A top virologist and prominent Chinese researcher sounds alarm over reluctance to clear mRNA vaccines amid regional outbreaks and the government rollout of inactivated virus-based booster shots without real-word evidence.

A new emergency authorization marks China’s fourth approval for inactivated COVID-19 vaccines, despite lingering doubts over the protection offered by the technology and surging cases in one of the most vaccinated countries where Sinopharm’s inactivated vaccines are widely used.

Originated by a Suzhou-based biotech founded two years ago and now being jointly developed with WalVax, China’s first homegrown mRNA COVID-19 vaccine is now entering the final stages of development.

Amid a case of re-infection of a vaccinated healthcare worker in western China’s Xi’an city, and ongoing debate over domestic vaccines' efficacy, increasing attention is being paid in China to raising inoculation rates for COVID-19 and moving towards herd immunity.