--- description: Chinese citizens were outraged after a vaccine manufacturer was found to have falsified records and distributed faulty vaccines for children title: Outrage in China Over Latest Vaccine Safety Scandal image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1aaf88426bfe4af1/698935f0929fad6c84bf1227/rtx6ccih.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [World](/section/world/) ## World Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [China](/tag/china/) ## China Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Outrage in China Over Latest Vaccine Safety Scandal by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 23, 2018 9:21 AM CUT  A nurse prepares a vaccine to be given to a child in a hospital in Beijing, China on April 13, 2016. A nurse prepares a vaccine to be given to a child in a hospital in Beijing, China on April 13, 2016.Damir Sagolj—Reuters by [Eli Meixler](/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jul 23, 2018 9:21 AM CUT Chinese Premiere Li Keqiang tried to reassure outraged citizens Monday after one of country’s largest vaccine manufacturers was found to have falsified records and distributed [250,000 faulty vaccines](https://www.scmp.com/news/china/policies-politics/article/2156357/new-vaccine-scandal-grips-china-parents-say-theyve-lost "undefined") for children, in the latest scandal over suspect medication to hit the country. Following an investigation, Changchun Changsheng Bio-technology Ltd. was found to have [falsified reports](https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2155520/chinese-drug-watchdog-orders-rabies-vaccine-maker-stop-output "undefined") regarding the production and inspection of some 113,000 rabies vaccines, according to the _South China Morning_ _Post_. The disclosure was the company’s second major scandal in a week: just days earlier, a probe by state food and drug regulators announced that Changsheng had distributed more than 250,000 doses of a “substandard” DPT (diphtheria, pertussis, and tetanus) vaccine, which was discovered last year_._ Changsheng, which produces about 23% of China’s rabies vaccines, was fined 3.4 million yuan (US$502,200) and ordered to halt all rabies vaccine production and recall flawed doses. Investigators are also looking into whether to file criminal charges. In a statement released Sunday, Premier Li Keqiang said the company’s conduct “violated a moral bottom line,” and he pledged to “resolutely crack down” on threats to public safety, [according](https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/chinese-premier-orders-investigation-vaccine-makers-56749733 "undefined") to the Associated Press. The company expressed its “deepest apology” in a statement. According to Chinese state media, [more than 200,000 children](http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/a/201807/23/WS5b54ad78a310796df4df7f02.html "undefined") in Shandong province received the suspect vaccines, though there have been no reports of injuries or harmful side-effects. Anxious parents in China were incensed by the revelations, which became the [second-highest](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-china-vaccines/fresh-scandal-erupts-over-vaccine-safety-in-china-idUSKBN1KC0CW "undefined") trending topic over the weekend on Chinese microblogging platform Weibo. The incident has reignited long-held fears over fake medicine and distrust in China’s scandal-plagued health and food authorities. In 2008, six children died and 300,000 became unwell after drinking [contaminated milk powder](http://content.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1841535,00.html "undefined") formula. In 2016, $90 million worth of improperly stored vaccines were found to have been sold around the country, while last week, a cardiac drug was recalled after a European medical regulator discovered that it contained an impurity linked to cancer. ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5345677/china-rabies-vaccine-changsheng-outcry/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5345677/china-rabies-vaccine-changsheng-outcry/"},"headline":"Outrage in China Over Latest Vaccine Safety Scandal","datePublished":"2018-07-23T09:21:47.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-23T20:55:21.777Z","description":"It's the country's latest scandal over suspect medication","url":"https://time.com/5345677/china-rabies-vaccine-changsheng-outcry/","keywords":["China","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1aaf88426bfe4af1/698935f0929fad6c84bf1227/rtx6ccih.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eli Meixler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eli/"}],"articleSection":"World","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt1aaf88426bfe4af1/698935f0929fad6c84bf1227/rtx6ccih.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"FILE PHOTO: A nurse prepares a vaccine to be given to a child in a hospital in Beijing","caption":"FILE PHOTO: A nurse prepares a vaccine to be given to a child in a hospital in Beijing","creditText":"Damir Sagolj—Reuters","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/world/","name":"World"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/china/","name":"China"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5345677/china-rabies-vaccine-changsheng-outcry/","name":"Outrage in China Over Latest Vaccine Safety Scandal"}}]}] ```