Li urges more R&D in outbreak fight

Premier calls for developing enhanced test kits, pharmaceuticals, vaccines

Premier Li Keqiang urged greater breakthroughs in the research and development of more efficient test kits, pharmaceuticals and vaccines to help the country better battle the novel coronavirus epidemic.

Li's remark on Friday came as he visited a national emergency response platform in Beijing coping with the COVID-19 outbreak.

The premier was told by officials that China has taken the lead in the development of nucleic acid test kits, and the country's production volume can meet domestic demand.

He called for efforts to develop test kits that can allow quicker and more accurate results and easier operations going forward, saying that the kits have played a crucial role in epidemic control and prevention.

It is also important to ensure that relevant testing facilities are in place and to boost the training of personnel to enhance testing capacity－a prerequisite for early detection, isolation and treatment of infected cases and curbing the spread of the epidemic, he said.

Li also heard reports that a number of effective medicines, including traditional Chinese medicines, have been selected as treatment therapies with some drugs still undergoing clinical trials.

He said that the whole of society is eagerly awaiting effective antiviral drugs, and more work must be done regarding the selection of drugs and clinical trials.

The key is to select several core pharmaceuticals that are safe, reliable and have significant clinical effects, Li added.

He went on to say that the drugs must offer more effective treatment for patients in critical condition, reduce mortality rates and prevent mild cases from worsening.

The premier underlined the importance of vaccines in the fight against the epidemic, saying that the research and development of vaccines must be pushed forward with intensified efforts.

He highlighted the need to respect scientific principles and strictly follow standards to ensure product quality.

Strengths from different sectors must be combined in the research process, and international cooperation must be stepped up to ensure safe and effective vaccines can be developed at an early date, he said.

Li called for relevant government departments to closely follow R&D developments as well as the production of test kits, drugs and vaccines, and urged better efforts to improve services, refine oversight and improve the efficiency of supervision and approval without lowering standards.