UAE to give under-trial Covid vaccine to health staff

The UAE government has granted emergency approval for use of an under-trial coronavirus vaccine for health workers. A phase III trial of a Covid-19 vaccine developed by a Chinese company began in the UAE in July and is yet to be completed. The govt announcement to give vaccine to the health staff has come amid a surge in coronavirus cases. The Arab country reported over 1,000 cases on Saturday, which is its highest since the start of the pandemic. There were close to 800 new cases on Monday. Emergency use of the vaccine, which is still being tested, was granted after a set criteria and after it had been tested on 31,000 volunteers, the govt said.