UAE Donates COVID-19 Test Kits from BGI to Nevada, U.S. Government Warns Against Using it for Fear of Leakage of Patient Privacy

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) donated 250,000 doses of Chinese-made COVID-19 test kits to the State of Nevada. However, the officials from the U.S. Department of Foreign Affairs and Homeland Security privately warned the State of Nevada not to use this batch of test kits due to concerns over patient privacy, the accuracy of the kits, and the involvement of the Chinese government.

U.S. intelligence agencies have been warning that China and other countries may use test samples to learn about the medical history of the tester, illnesses, or genetic characteristics of the test subjects, but they have not provided evidence. According to an internal email obtained by the Associated Press under the Public Records Act, the office of the Governor of Nevada shows that the U.S. authorities are most concerned about the test kits produced by BGI Group from China, the largest gene-sequencing company in the world.

William Puff, a Homeland Security regional attaché at the U.S. Embassy in Abu Dhabi, sent an email to Nevada officials, “I hope that the leadership of the Nevada COVID-19 Task Force is aware of this. As a result, they can make an informed decision and know some concerns of the U.S. government."

Source: Apple Daily #Oct16

https://hk.appledaily.com/international/20201016/SC4B532XLBAOHIITX4SQTKBVUA/

#UAE #COVID19testkits #US #Nevada #USDeptofHomelandSecurity #USDeptofForeignAffairs #BGIgroup #Chinatestkits #AbuDhabi #COVID19 #WuhanCoronavirus #WilliamPuff

UAE Claims 86% effectiveness of Sinopharm COVID Vaccine, Experts Question Failure to Account for Clinical Test Data

The UAE health authorities announced on Wednesday (Dec 9) that the Chinese Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine has been tested and confirmed to be 86% effective, making it the first country in the world to certify the effectiveness of a Chinese-made vaccine. However, some academics, holding a wait-and-see attitude, believe that the UAE authorities have not provided key and detailed information, including data from the Phase 3 clinical trials.

The UAE is one of the ten countries where two of Sinopharm’ vaccines are undergoing clinical trials. UAE indicated that it had approved an interim analysis of the vaccine’s Phase 3 clinical trial data, which showed 100% effectiveness in preventing mild symptoms from turning into moderate to severe conditions. They also claimed an overall effective protection rate of 86%, adding that the vaccine poses no serious safety concerns.

The Sinopharm Group did not confirm the news or comment to the media for several hours after UAE’s announcement. The New York Times even reported that it was disconnected when it tried to reach the group on the phone. It was only at dusk on Thursday (Dec 10) that Sinopharm uploaded its vaccine registration statement for the UAE. Still, it did not provide further data on the Phase 3 tests, such as the number of people infected with the vaccine and the volunteers’ age. The group also did not make any “welcome” remarks.

#UAE #China #Sinopharm #COVID19 #Vaccines #Trials #TestData #NewYorkTimes

Source: Stand News #Dec11

https://bit.ly/3i0j9zj