China COVID: WHO warns about under-representing COVID deaths
Image credit: BBC
China is understating the full impact of COVID on the nation, particularly mortality, according to the World Health Organization.
Since the majority of limitations were lifted last month, the number of instances has increased.
However, employing its stringent standards, China has stopped providing daily instance statistics and has only reported 22 COVID deaths since December.
WHO director for emergencies Dr. Michael Ryan stated, “We believe that the definition [of a COVID death] is too limited.”
According to Dr. Ryan, the statistics from China “under-represent the full burden of the disease in terms of hospital admissions, in terms of ICU hospitalizations’, and notably in terms of mortality.”
China revised its definition of a COVID death last month, so now only individuals who pass away from respiratory ailments are counted.
According to WHO recommendations, governments should track “excess deaths,” or the number of fatalities that exceed what would be predicted based on mortality rates before the pandemic.
Dr. Ryan went on to say that he was looking forward to obtaining “more thorough data” and that China had stepped up its interaction with the WHO in recent weeks.
However, he also suggested that specific medical professionals may share their information and experiences.
Travel limitations for citizens of China have been implemented by more than a dozen countries. Beijing called them political and warned of retaliation.
Wednesday saw the release of fresh guidance from the European Union, which “highly” advises that all member states impose the requirement that travellers flying out of China present a negative COVID test before departure.
Despite the increase in instances, China has not yet seen any new COVID variations. The WHO has cautioned that, while a decline in testing may be to blame,
Before a wave of coronavirus illnesses is anticipated in the countryside, where vaccination rates are uneven, the Chinese government has announced it is sending medical supplies to remote hospitals.
China may experience another wave of illnesses as families assemble for the Lunar New Year in a few weeks, one of the busiest travel seasons in the nation, according to Dr. Abdi Rahman Mahamud, director of the WHO’s warning and response coordination section.