MPs and members of the Senate began receiving their covid-19 jabs yesterday — a day after Prime Minister Moustafa Madbouly signed off on their eligibility, Youm7 reports. All MPs and senators will be vaccinated along with their immediate families. Rep. Mostafa Bakry had previously proposed that the entire House of Representatives go on recess until members are inoculated, after 15 MPs were infected.

The Health Ministry reported 818 new covid-19 infections yesterday, up from 801 the day before. Egypt has now disclosed a total of 211,307 confirmed cases of covid-19. The ministry also reported 42 new deaths, bringing the country’s total death toll to 12,487.

China can’t make up its mind on whether Sinopharm and Sinovac are effective: Beijing is walking back comments that its locally-made covid-19 vaccines “don't have very high protection rates,” with director of the China Centers for Disease Control Gao Fu saying his remarks had been “taken out of context,” the Financial Times reports. Fu told local media that he was suggesting that vaccines should be mixed to “optimise” China’s immunisation plan. “There are many scientific questions that need to be addressed,” Gao told Global Times.

By the numbers: The Sinovac shot, of which Egypt plans to produce 80 mn doses each year through state-owned Vacsera, was reportedly found to be just 50.4% effective at preventing symptomatic infections according to recently released data from a stage 3 trial in Brazil. Sinopharm, of which Egypt has so far received 680k doses, has claimed a higher 79% efficacy rate. We are expected to get our hands on an additional 900k-1 mn doses of the jab in the coming days.

A covid-19 antibody pill has proven to be 81% effective at reducing the risk of developing symptomatic covid-19 infection, according to a mid-stage study by Regeneron, who is now seeking to expand the use of its experimental antiviral med in the US as a preventative treatment, according to a statement.