Turkey begins Phase 3 trials of homegrown COVID vaccine

Turkey began administering its national coronavirus vaccine candidate to volunteers on Aug. 25 in the Central Anatolian province of Kayseri as part of Phase 3 studies.

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The inactivated Turkovac vaccine candidate was jointly developed by the Health Ministry, Health Institutes of Turkey, and Erciyes University (ERU).

ERU Rector Mustafa Çalış said the trials of Turkovac on volunteers began at the university.

The vaccine also began to be applied to volunteers at Kayseri City Hospital on Aug. 25.

"Phase-3 studies will be carried out completely in accordance with world standards. Vaccine effectiveness will be compared accordingly," said İlhami Çelik, a member of the Coronavirus Science Board.

"We will compare this vaccine with the inactivated vaccine, Sinovac," Çelik added.

Turkey has administered more than 91.08 million doses of COVID-19 vaccines since launching a mass immunization campaign in January, according to official figures.

Koca denies allegations he wasn't vaccinated

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Health Minister Fahrettin Koca denied allegations on social media that no one from his family, including himself, was vaccinated.

"I got the first vaccine in Turkey. Every member of my family has had their vaccinations," Koca said, lashing out at the fake accounts that made the claim.

Announcing that two unvaccinated doctors died due to COVID-19, Koca once again called on citizens to be vaccinated.

Meanwhile, a Turkey-based reproductive health institution recommended that couples planning on having a baby should get the coronavirus vaccine.

The Turkish Reproductive Health Association underlined that pregnant women experience COVID-19 infections more severely, citing...