Chinese mainland records 200 confirmed COVID-19 cases

Covid-19

BEIJING, Dec 27 (APP): The Chinese mainland recorded 200 confirmed COVID-19 cases the other day with 162 linked to local transmissions and 38 from overseas, data from the National Health Commission showed on Monday.

A total of 27 new asymptomatic cases were also recorded, and 495 asymptomatic patients remain under medical observation.

Confirmed cases on the Chinese mainland now total 101,277, with the death toll remaining unchanged at 4,636 since January.

The latest tally of confirmed cases in the special administrative regions i.e. Hong Kong remained at 12,589 with 213 death, Macao remained at 77 with no death and Taiwan region remained at 16,915 with 850 deaths respectively.

Facing dual COVID-19 risks from a domestic flare-up and the raging Omicron variant overseas, Beijing, the capital of China has already tightened epidemic prevention and control measures and vowed to strictly adhere to a dynamic zero policy as Chinese New Year and the Beijing Winter Olympics approach.

Beijing’s moves came one day after Xi’an, capital city of Northwest China’s Shaanxi Province, known for its Terracotta Warriors, imposed a citywide lockdown following a fresh flare-up that spilled over into six cities including Beijing.

Chinese health analysts said the local outbreak in Xi’an, which occurred around 40 days ahead of Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, increases the epidemic prevention pressure for China, but with timely and precise measures, experience in quelling local outbreaks and high vaccination rate among the Chinese population and participants of the Games, China will ensure a safe international sports event.

Xu Hejian, a spokesperson from the Beijing government told media that Beijing had revised its COVID-19 prevention and control measures, calling on residents to spend the upcoming holidays – New Year’s Day and Spring Festival – in Beijing.

The new measures apply to cases of locally transmitted infections in Beijing, residents in the district where reported cases are not allowed to leave the capital other than for essential reasons, and residents in the city’s townships where reported cases are restricted from leaving Beijing, Xu said.

Xu said that the Beijing government encourages companies to adopt flexible work hours and help employees avoid leaving or entering Beijing during peak periods. Anyone returning to Beijing is required to present a negative nucleic acid testing result issued within 48 hours and a green health code.

Beijing also announced the limiting of family gatherings to 10 people, and strict controls on national conferences and training events held in the city.

Chinese health analysts said epidemic prevention and control was crucial for China’s political center Beijing, where the Winter Olympics will be held in February.


Wang Guangfa, a respiratory expert at Peking University First Hospital, told the Global Times that Beijing’s measures were revised promptly after assessing the risks,

as the arrival of foreign delegations will add to the pressure facing the capital in preventing imported cases in light of the Omicron storm in many countries, and if locally-transmitted cases spread to Beijing triggering a local outbreak, it would be much harder for China to hold the international sports event.

APP Services