Sao Paulo nurse first to get CoronaVac shot in Brazil
Sao Paulo Governor Joao Doria, who oversees the Butantan biomedical center that is partnered with Sinovac in Brazil, said Anvisa's decision was a triumph for science as he gave the go-ahead for the first vaccination in his state.
"A victory for science. A victory for life," Doria said.
President Jair Bolsonaro, a coronavirus sceptic who has refused to take a vaccine himself, is under growing pressure to start inoculations in Brazil, which has lost more than 200,000 to COVID-19 - the worst death toll outside the United States.
Delays with vaccine shipments and testing results have held up vaccinations in the country, once a global leader in mass immunizations and now a regional laggard after countries such as Chile and Mexico started giving shots last month.
Bolsonaro's government aims to kick off a national immunization program this week but is waiting on shipments of the AstraZeneca vaccine at the center of its plans.
