It's one thing to do shady practices when you're dealing with government; it's another to put innocent people's lives in danger. This is what happened when a major vaccine producer in China was discovered to be involved in corrupt practices.
China Daily reports that a team has already been dispatched by the State Council, which will look into these allegations. The violations include laws that were broken in lieu of producing a vaccine for rabies.
The medical manufacturer in question is Changchun Changsheng Biotech Co. The inspection, done on the 15th of July, showed that they created false entries into records about production and inspection, possibly to shorten the process of a declaration to the government. This discovery, when shown on social media, earned the ire of a majority of the Chinese public.
It has its intended effect; the public's trust, already eroded after learning of shady deals and goings-on, has further deteriorated. The public furor, according to NDTV, is a reflection of how advanced the public has gotten and how their demand from the government has grown.
It will take a lot of work to restore public confidence in the healthcare industry in China. One woman said that her 'trust' in Chinese vaccines has eroded to almost non-existence. The same woman also said that, instead of locally-produced drugs and vaccines, she will seek out brands that were made outside of China.
President Xi Jinping, currently on a trip to Africa, weighed in on the scandal, calling out the Chinese company in question to rectify their wrongs.
This is nothing new to the Chinese healthcare industry, which, in 2008, was embroiled in a scandal over melamine-laced baby formula. Melamine is a chemical used to produce plastic ware and is harmful to people, let alone infants who the baby formula is intended for.
The government, in a bid to ensure damage control is effectively implemented, has stopped accepting products from Changchin Changsheng Bio-tech Co. until they can show that they've made improvements and applied necessary precautions. Shandong province's local Center for Disease Control and Prevention also said they were preparing a list of ineffective vaccines coming from the company.
