As the Communist Party of China gears up for its once in every five years National Congress late this fall, the need for more novel drugs to help address the persistent coronavirus pandemic is rising amid the country’s strict “COVID Zero” policies.

Serum Institute will supply initial doses of NVX-CoV2373 in the US, but late approvals have meant Novavax's vaccine is facing weak demand and surplus stocks in other parts of the world. Meanwhile, Serum has also secured a nod in India for the first indigenously-developed HPV vaccine, also the fifth globally.

The Beijing Winter Olympics highlight a changing China that is becoming more confident and confrontational in its policies, although a willingness to challenge international rules could potentially stall the further introductions of novel vaccines and treatments at a critical juncture of the pandemic.

A relatively large outbreak in another major Chinese city after original epicenter Wuhan heightens the urgency for a more effective mRNA vaccine.