145 babies given expired polio vaccine as concerns surge over made-in-China products

More than 100 children were given an expired polio vaccine in China, reports from State media said.

According to South China Morning Post, 145 babies in Jinhu county in Jiangsu province were on Monday given the vaccine that had an expiry date past December 11.

Also Read: Fake drugs kill tens of thousands in Africa each year 

The affected children are aged between three months and 4 years, the Chinese newspaper said.

The incident was discovered apparently when a parent, who works at a hospital in the town, took their child to be immunised and asked to see the date on the vaccine.

Polio vaccines in China are free and compulsory.

Following the damning revelations, three medics are said to have been suspended as investigations commence.

In November last year, VOA reported that tens of thousands of people in Africa die each year because of fake and counterfeit medication.

Citing research from an E.U.-funded report, the article said the drugs are mainly made in China.

“Almost half the fake and low-quality medicines reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) between 2013 and 2017 were found to be in sub-Saharan Africa,” said the report that was backed by Interpol and the Institute for Security Studies.