"People living in low-risk areas in China are now allowed to travel within the country," health officials announced in a press conference held on Sunday in Beijing.
China's Health Commission said 75 million doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered in the country and the inoculation campaign continues for people older than 60.
"Some areas have started vaccinations for people over 60 who are in good health… and we will launch a mass inoculation program for this age group as soon as we have sufficient data from clinical trials," said He Qinghua, an inspector at Bureau of Disease Prevention and Control of National Health Commission.
Health authorities also said China is expanding vaccine production to meet the demand for people inside the country and abroad. This comes after China recorded the first local COVID-19 case since February in the northwest city of Xi'an. The infected patient had received two shots of the vaccine between the end of January and early February.
"As for the efficacy of the vaccine, it protects most people, especially from severe symptoms. For some individuals, it may fail to have its due effect, especially in the case in Xi'an. We will further study and investigate the reason for this incident. But we first need to create herd immunity that is to vaccinate the majority of people," said Wang Huaqing, chief expert for the Immunization Plan at Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
During the press conference, experts from China's leading vaccine producer – Sinovac – also talked about the use of their shots in other countries.
"Since last December, Sinovac's vaccines have been approved for use in nearly 30 countries, including China, Chile, Brazil and Turkey. That includes emergency use, conditional listing and formal listing. And they have been used in mass vaccinations," noted Liu Peicheng, spokesperson for Sinovac Biotech Ltd. "So far, more than 70 million doses of Sinovac's vaccine have been administered around the world, including China."
Health authorities warn that China's vaccination rate is still relatively low compared to many countries around the world due to lack of public knowledge. They say many in China have not felt an urgency to get vaccinated, as the virus has been largely kept under control.
Health authorities are calling on the public to get vaccinated, not to only protect themselves, but also their families and the larger population.