US Not To Allow Indians Vaccinated With Covaxin

Starting this November, the United States is gearing up to allow air passengers who are fully vaccinated. India is among the 33 countries from where fully vaccinated travelers will be allowed to enter. Foreign nationals will need to present proof of vaccination before travel and will not be required to quarantine on arrival.

But then, it is not completely good news. Only Covishield is the only India-made vaccine that is on the list of vaccines allowed by the US administration. India’s indigenous COVID-19 Vaccine, Covaxin is not allowed as it is not approved by the USFDA or the WHO.

That means those who intended to travel abroad will have to obtain both doses of the Covishield before planning their travel to the United States. In case they are already vaccinated with Covaxin, then there are no studies if it is safe to take Covishield. For now, the Government of India does not allow that as well.

Meanwhile, Bharat Biotech, the makers of Covaxin say they are close to getting approval from the WHO and have already submitted all the necessary documentation. Moderna, Pfizer-BioNTech, Johnson & Johnson, Oxford-AstraZeneca, Covishield (an Oxford-AstraZeneca formulation), and China’s Sinopharm and Sinovac are the only vaccines allowed by the US right now.