FALSE: Vaccine for novel coronavirus was available since 2001

Claim: A vaccine for the novel coronavirus was available as early as 2001.

Several Facebook users posted a picture of a bottle with the words “coronavirus vaccine” on the label, saying it was taken in 2001. One caption read, “Now this was 2001, tell me why 19 years later they say there is no [vaccine.]”

Other users shared these posts with Filipino captions and/or shared them in Filipino groups.

This claim was flagged by Facebook Claim Check, the platform’s tool for monitoring posts with potentially false information.

Rating: FALSE

The facts: The vaccine shown in the photo is used for dogs against canine coronavirus. It is not effective in preventing COVID-19.

The photo is labeled “Canine Coronavirus Vaccine.” According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), coronaviruses are a large family of viruses, and the canine coronavirus does not infect humans.

Canine coronavirus is not the same as the novel coronavirus which causes COVID-19. Instead, it affects dogs’ gastrointestinal systems or causes respiratory infections in them.

Upon closer inspection, the label of the vaccine shown in the photo displays the brand Nobivac 1-CV, which is a vaccine for dogs against the canine coronavirus.

There is still no vaccine or any specific antiviral medicine against COVID-19, according to the World Health Organization. Possible vaccines and specific drug treatments are under investigation and are undergoing clinical trials.

There are around 80 companies and academic institutions that are in the process of producing a vaccine for COVID-19. (READ: What you need to know: Coronavirus cures, vaccines being tested) – Loreben Tuquero/Rappler.com

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