# Hungary authorises Eastern COVID vaccines alongside EMA shots

Date: 2021

In early 2021 Hungary authorised Sputnik V and a Chinese inactivated vaccine beside EMA-authorised shots, opening a faster national campaign than several Western peers. Safety communication was contested. The authorisations are completed public-health acts.

Hungary expanded its COVID-19 vaccine procurement beyond products supplied through the European Union, using Chinese and Russian vaccines alongside Western products. On 24 February 2021, [Viktor Orbán](/people/mig-actor-viktor-orban) said the country should obtain as many vaccines as possible as quickly as possible regardless of whether they came from East or West. The European Commission’s Hungary health profile later noted that Hungary’s vaccination rate exceeded the EU average during the early rollout. Diversified procurement increased the number of vaccine channels available to Hungary and expanded [vaccine accessibility](/drivers/vaccine-accessibility) beyond Western suppliers. The weight remains moderate because accessibility also depended on authorization, logistics, public acceptance and later supply conditions.

## People

- Viktor Orbán: https://factrail.ai/people/viktor-orban

## Drivers

- Public and donor investment in immunization systems: https://factrail.ai/drivers/ph-immunization-investment
- Vaccine Accessibility: https://factrail.ai/drivers/vaccine-accessibility

## Sources

- https://2015-2022.miniszterelnok.hu/we-must-procure-as-many-vaccines-as-possible-as-quickly-as-possible/
- https://www.euronews.com/2021/02/24/hungary-becomes-first-eu-nation-to-use-china-s-sinopharm-vaccine-against-covid-19
- https://health.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2021-12/2021_chp_hu_english.pdf
- https://www.reuters.com/article/us-health-coronavirus-hungary-vaccines-idUSKBN2AO1F0/
- https://www.ema.europa.eu/en/news/ema-covid-19-vaccines-authorised-eu

## Methodology

https://factrail.ai/methodology

Canonical: https://factrail.ai/facts/hu-covid-vaccine-eastern-western-2021