China launches nationwide action after faulty rabies vaccine

With the recent faulty rabies vaccine scandal creating panic, China has launched a nationwide campaign to provide medical consultation and free inoculation of rabies vaccines.

Rabies vaccines made by the Changchun Changsheng Life Sciences Company, the second largest in China, were found to have violated national standards including usage of expired fluids and falsified production dates. The vaccines were also widely exported, including to India.

The Drug Controller General of India early this month ordered an immediate withdrawal of rabies vaccines from the market and also banned their imports from a Chinese manufacturer that allegedly fabricated records.

Health institutions and disease control centres across China are providing consultation services for people who received rabies vaccines made by the company, state-run Global Times reported today.

China has designated 36,482 hospitals and health institutions for consultation, the report said.

No deaths from rabies have been reported among the patients who received the faulty vaccines, it said.

Investigators found Changchun Changsheng had violated rules on production management and national drug standards for the vaccines since April 2014, including the use of expired fluids and false production dates, the report said.

China's National Health Commission and the State Drug Administration issued an inoculation plan for people who have received rabies vaccines from the company. Those who are currently being treated and have not completed the required dosage can switch to vaccines from other companies at no charge.

Those who have completed the vaccination regime can also be re-inoculated without charge if they wish. For those who received the faulty vaccines less than a year ago, vaccination institutions will provide tracking, observation and advisory services, it said.

The daily quoted a resident surnamed Zhang from Qingdao in East China's Shandong province as saying that she panicked as she received the company's rabies vaccine last autumn and her mother was injected this June at Qingdao's Shibeiqu People's Hospital.