The China Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recorded 3,278 deaths from Covid-19 in hospitals between January 27 and February 2 on Saturday, it was reported this Sunday.
Among the nearly 6,500 hospital deaths, the Chinese CDC indicated that 289 deaths were caused directly by Covid-19 and 3,147 indirectly.
The number of deaths during the seven-day period represents a drop of almost 50% from the previous seven days, between January 20 and 26, when 6,364 deaths were recorded, according to state media.
In the latest update, the CDC added that about 99,000 people have been hospitalized due to COVID-19 nationwide since February 2, including 653 in critical condition.
Since late December, China has shifted from daily bulletins on SARS-CoV-2 cases and deaths to weekly bulletins, in part because the end of routine PCR testing for much of the population meant the spread of the virus was not could be controlled. accurately drawn.
The latest weekly bulletin no longer includes the recently concluded Lunar New Year holiday period between the 21st and 27th of last month, but instead stays within the so-called “chunyun”, the seasonal human migration peak for the New Year holiday. Lunar, which ends on the 15th of this month.
Chinese and international experts warned that this period could cause a new wave of infections and hospital pressure in rural areas, with scarce health resources, due to the high number of displacements.
British health data analysis company Airfinity forecast that the country could record around 36,000 deaths a day in that holiday week.
After almost three years of strict anti-pandemic measures, such as lockdowns and almost total border closures, China began to abandon the ‘zero Covid’ policy in early December, and on January 8 downgraded its management of the category A disease. – the highest danger level – to category B, effectively marking the end of this strategy.
Source: TSF
