04:34China: Govt further eases COVID measures, scraps quarantine requirement for international travellers
Officials from the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council announced that they would end the COVID quarantine for international travellers in early January on Tuesday in Beijing.
“Quarantine measures will no longer be implemented for coronavirus-infected people, close contacts will no longer be identified, high and low-risk areas will no longer be designated, and quarantine infectious disease management measures will no longer be taken for an oversea traveller and import goods,” said Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission.
In addition, Mi Feng announced that China will reduce COVID-19 measures on January 8 next year to rename the virus to class B infectious diseases, instead of Class A infectious diseases, a major shift in epidemic response policies. “This adjustment is exactly what the comprehensive analysis believes that we are one step closer to coming out of the pandemic,” Liang Wannian, a member of an experts group advising the National Health Commission said.
“However, the current COVID-19 epidemic is still ongoing all over the world, there is still a lot of uncertainty about the variation of the virus, and the overall domestic epidemic situation is still in a rapidly rising stage,” Liang added.
COVID-19 cases will get triaged and treated on a scheduled basis to meet health guidelines. The country will also adjust its testing guidelines and the frequency and content of publishing information on the epidemic.
After the adjustment, China's COVID-19 prevention and control efforts will focus on protecting the health and preventing serious cases. Measures will be reportedly taken to maximise the protection of lives and health and minimise the impact of the epidemic on economic and social development.
04:34Officials from the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council announced that they would end the COVID quarantine for international travellers in early January on Tuesday in Beijing.
“Quarantine measures will no longer be implemented for coronavirus-infected people, close contacts will no longer be identified, high and low-risk areas will no longer be designated, and quarantine infectious disease management measures will no longer be taken for an oversea traveller and import goods,” said Mi Feng, spokesperson for the National Health Commission.
In addition, Mi Feng announced that China will reduce COVID-19 measures on January 8 next year to rename the virus to class B infectious diseases, instead of Class A infectious diseases, a major shift in epidemic response policies. “This adjustment is exactly what the comprehensive analysis believes that we are one step closer to coming out of the pandemic,” Liang Wannian, a member of an experts group advising the National Health Commission said.
“However, the current COVID-19 epidemic is still ongoing all over the world, there is still a lot of uncertainty about the variation of the virus, and the overall domestic epidemic situation is still in a rapidly rising stage,” Liang added.
COVID-19 cases will get triaged and treated on a scheduled basis to meet health guidelines. The country will also adjust its testing guidelines and the frequency and content of publishing information on the epidemic.
After the adjustment, China's COVID-19 prevention and control efforts will focus on protecting the health and preventing serious cases. Measures will be reportedly taken to maximise the protection of lives and health and minimise the impact of the epidemic on economic and social development.