China yesterday said that it has sacked six senior officials at its food and drug regulator after a safety scandal at vaccine maker Changsheng Biotechnology Co Ltd (長生生物) revealed failings at the government body, including inadequate supervision.
On its Web site, the Chinese State Administration for Market Regulation said that among officials dismissed were Ding Jianhua (丁建華), who headed two departments at the now-defunct China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA).
The same statement was posted on the CFDA’s Web site.
Changsheng was in July accused of falsifying data for a rabies vaccine and manufacturing an ineffective vaccine for babies, sparking widespread public anger and multiple probes including police investigations.
The Changsheng case exposed that the CFDA officials “did not provide sufficient supervision, strong enough oversight, nor were they strict enough in their inspections,” the market regulator said.
While there were no known reports of people being harmed by the vaccines, regulators ordered Changsheng to halt its production and recall is rabies vaccine.
Changsheng has apologized and said that it is cooperating with investigations.
On Friday, Beijing said that it had sacked a senior provincial official and was probing a former top drug regulator.
Xinhua news agency also reported that more than 40 government officials, including seven at the provincial level, have been held accountable for the scandal and some have been sacked.
In a separate report yesterday, Xinhua said that the central province of Hubei has removed six government officials from their posts in relation to another inferior vaccines case involving Chinese company Wuhan Institute of Biological Products, part of Sinopharm Group Co Ltd.
The company on Friday said on its Web site that it has dismissed its deputy general manager in charge of production and warned or fined eight of its other employees.
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