TAIPEI, Taiwan (AP) — After a slow start, China is now doing what virtually no other country in the world can: leveraging the power and all-encompassing reach of its one-party system and a maturing domestic vaccine industry to administer shots at a staggering pace. The rollout is far from perfect, including uneven distribution, but Chinese public health leaders still hope to inoculate 80% of the population of 1.4 billion by the end of the year. As of Tuesday, China had given out more than 680 million doses. That’s roughly a third of the 1.9 billion shots distributed globally. The call to get vaccinated comes from every corner of society. That pressure underscores both the system’s strength and the risks to civil liberties.
Slow to start, China now vaccinating at a staggering pace
