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china vaccine scandal

More than 350 Chinese officials are to face punishment over a scandal involving the illegal sale of vaccines.

According to the Xinhua news agency, 192 criminal cases had been filed over the case, which saw improperly stored or transported vaccines sent to 59 health institutions.

The government has said it will tighten procedures around vaccine-handling.

The vaccine scandal has caused widespread anger in China.China vaccine scandal

The illegal vaccine ring was reportedly in operation since 2011, and in April 2015 two women were arrested for selling some $88 million worth of vaccines.

However, the details were only made public last month, when the authorities issued a call demanding that suppliers come forward to help them trace potential victims.

China’s State Council said the 357 officials faced demotion or losing their jobs and that 202 had been detained so far.

Health authorities have also urged people to continue coming forward for vaccinations.

The China office of t

The World Health Organization (WHO) in China has said vaccines needed to be handled properly or they can become less effective.

It stressed that improperly kept vaccines did not in themselves present much danger.

Thirty-seven people have been arrested in Shandong, eastern China, over a huge vaccine scandal, the Chinese state media report.

Shandong police announced last month they had arrested a mother and her daughter accused of buying and selling vaccines illegally.

The estimated $88 million worth of vaccines were not properly refrigerated or transported.

The illegal vaccine ring, said to have been in operation since 2011, has sparked widespread anger in China.

The scandal has led to a crackdown, with checks ordered on vaccine makers, wholesalers and buyers.

Photo PA

Photo PA

The products were bought from a variety of sources, both licensed and unlicensed, then sold on to both illegal agents and legal local disease control and prevention centers at inflated prices, reported the Xinhua news agency.

The ring is alleged to have involved hundreds of people across 20 provinces, it said.

Though authorities had known about it since April 2015, they only made the news public on March 18 when they issued a call demanding that suppliers come forward to help them trace potential victims.

The delay has angered many people in China who questioned why the authorities had not alerted the public earlier.

Local authorities have now been given a deadline of March 25 to identify who bought the medicines.

Three pharmaceutical companies are being investigated, Xinhua reports, citing people handling the case. One, Shandong Zhaoxin Bio-tech Co, has been ordered to suspend operations, it added.

The China office of the World Health Organization (WHO) said vaccines needed to be handled properly or they can become less effective.

It stressed that improperly kept vaccines did not in themselves present much danger.

“It is important to note, however, that improperly stored or expired vaccine seldom if ever causes a toxic reaction. Therefore there is likely to be minimal safety risk in this particular situation,” the WHO said.