China’s zero-Covid approach, healthcare system, reopening plans
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Protective suits-wearing volunteers handle trash outside an apartment block at College of Arts and Information Engineering of Dalian Polytechnic University, university town of Zhuanghe. This was November 15, 2021 in Dalian Province of China. On Sunday, over 60 COVID-19-affected students were identified in Zhuanghe.
Getty Pictures| Visual China Group | Getty Images
China is forging ahead with its zero-Covid approach, and there are signs it won’t be abandoning that stance anytime soon, according to U.S. investment bank Jefferies.
Many countries have begun to lift restrictions and are adapting to the virus, starting with large parts of the U.S.
Initially, countries took a more aggressive approach with mass lockdowns as well as strict social restrictions. But they changed their minds. abandoned that strategy as the highly infectious delta variant spread quickly and lockdowns became less effective.
But China has not eased its ultra-strict zero-Covid strategy which involves mass lockdowns — even if just one or a handful of cases are detected. The program includes extensive testing, tightly controlled, or closed border areas, and robust contact tracking systems.
Recently, Shanghai Disneyland visitors had to take Covid tests in order to exit. After authorities discovered that infected persons had been visiting the park, they requested this.
‘Closed until further notice’
This Asian titan is currently fighting the largest Covid epidemic caused by the Delta variant. according to Reuters.
“China … appears to have done very well managing COVID, but the Delta variant poses new challenges. In a November 18 note, Jefferies analysts stated that besides suppressing domestic cases ‘preventing import cases’ was a crucial part of this strategy.
The result is a country with no plans for immediate opening up to the virus and living with it. China seems to have been locked down indefinitely, as per the latest snap lockdown news.
Jefferies listed three indicators that China has not made any immediate efforts to change its zero-tolerance policy.
1. Passport renewal
Jefferies stated that passport renewal data indicates authorities have not planned any tourism or outbound travel for some time. According to Jefferies, the rate of new issuances and renewals for Chinese passports was lower in this half-year than it was in 2019.
Jefferies said, “This could suggest that the central government wants to limit people’s ability to travel to China.”
This note also referred to comments made by China’s National Immigration Administration, which said that those who don’t have an urgent need for travel abroad should delay their plans. Authorities claimed that passport renewals or issuances will be given priority to Chinese nationals who are studying abroad or work in the foreign country.
Comparatively, the U.S. passport issuance was 43% lower from 2019 to 2020 and 32% higher in the first half this year, compared with last year.
2. Dedicated quarantine facilities
Governments in Chinese cities are being told to build 20 rooms for every 10,000 citizens in dedicated or converted facilities – in order to cater to overseas arrivals, according to Jefferies.
Guangzhou has already begun to move away from hotels and will soon open a facility that boasts more than 5,000 rooms. Jefferies says other provinces will be “rapidly following” the example of Guangzhou.
Jefferies stated that the construction of dedicated quarantine facilities suggests inbound quarantine may be more effective for a longer time.
3. China’s Health-Care System
Jefferies suggests that China’s medical infrastructure may not have the capacity to handle more cases, as well as to deal with Covid as an endemic disease, if China opens its borders.
China is home to fewer doctors and hospital beds than most other countries. The analysts stated that China’s three-tiered healthcare system was unable to withstand the initial wave of COVID in 2020.
According to Jefferies, the three-tiered system of health care includes city-level and district-level clinics, as well as rural services offered by rural physicians. According to the report, rural areas have fewer doctors and hospital beds than urban ones, on an average of 1,000 persons.
According to the bank, “poor infrastructure for medical care in rural areas can make it difficult to spot COVID early and lead to large-scale outbreaks back into cities.” Jefferies said that 36% China’s people live in rural areas. Therefore, a closed border would be the best solution to stop the breakdown of the health care system.
China has a significantly lower health care spending than other countries. According to the bank, this might indicate that Chinese authorities may be concerned about an outbreak of large-scale disease that could disrupt their health care system.
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