Zero-COVIDPolicy Keeps Pandemic Under Control

Country to continue with strategy as contagiousvariant sweeps world

China will continue with its zero-COVID-19policy, which has proved effective and is gaining wider internationalrecognition amid emergence of the Omicron variant, according to officials andexperts.

The nation has seen more than 40 locallytransmitted outbreaks since bringing the COVID-19 outbreak under control inWuhan, capital of Hubei province, and throughout the province. These outbreakswere caused by imported infections, according to health authorities.

Liang Wannian, head of the National HealthCommission's COVID-19 leading task force, said China adopted the "dynamiczero-infections policy" in August.

"Under the overarching goal ofpreventing imported infections and domestic flare-ups, this policy means thatwhen a new local outbreak occurs, measures will be taken to promptly stem thespread of the virus and clear new infections," he said.

"This approach is the best option andthe guiding principle of China's disease control work. We must resolutelyadhere to the policy and protect the health and safety of the population as thetop priority."

Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at theChinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said the strategy of swiftlydealing with new outbreaks can protect most regions of China against the virus,ensure people live normal lives and that production can continue.

"This policy has had significantresults," he said. "Most regions on the Chinese mainland are free ofCOVID-19 infections, and new cases are either detected among incomingpassengers or brought in by cargo from overseas."

In late November, Wu forecast that withoutthese stringent measures, and as the virus rampaged across the world, Chinawould have experienced some 47.8 million infections and 950,000 related deathsif the infection and death rates were on par with the global average.

As the Omicron variant spreads rapidlyacross the world, prompting many countries to reimpose border closures andtravel curbs, experts said the success of China's policy has become even moreevident.

In an interview with Bloomberg, HuangYanzhong, a senior fellow for global health at the Council on ForeignRelations, which is based in New York, said the Omicron variant was a"booster shot" for the zero-COVID policy.

He added that efforts by some Westerncountries to reinstate COVID-19 restrictions have undermined their claims thatthe approach adopted by China is not sustainable.

Martin Jacques, a well-known scholar fromthe United Kingdom and a former senior fellow at Cambridge University'sDepartment of Politics and International Studies, said on Twitter that Westernnations, despite their dismal performances in dealing with the virus, arequestioning the effective work performed by China.

"Omicron arrives. Up go therestrictions. Panic stations. And China is sitting pretty. When will they learn－from China," he said in a postin late November.

Claims dismissed

A common misconception of China's viruscontrol strategy is that it is aimed at achieving zero infections.

Liang said, "Currently, we are notcapable of ensuring there will be no more new domestically transmittedinfections, but we are capable and confident of stamping out local infectionclusters as quickly as possible.

"A dynamic zero-COVID strategy meansnot letting the pandemic spiral out of control, but actively controlling it.This strategy meant we had to take prompt and precise action."

Liang said the first line of defense isimplementing pre-departure prevention measures targeting overseas travelers toChina－placing thesearrivals under "close-loop management" immediately they enter thecountry. Measures to prevent transmission via objects should also be taken.

Wen Xiaoqing, an official with the healthcommission in Tianjin, said local authorities have devised seamless proceduresfor handling overseas passengers.

"Our measures start right after aninternational flight lands in Tianjin－from checking passengers' health codes, temperatures and vaccinationhistory, to conducting epidemiological investigation," he said.

"People with symptoms such as fever orrespiratory illnesses are transferred by special vehicles to designatedhospitals, where they are isolated for further diagnosis and treatment. We alsothoroughly disinfect all areas they pass through."

Wu Hao, a national-level disease controlexpert and public health professor at Capital Medical University in Beijing,said the fact that the mainland's first Omicron infection was detected in acentralized isolation area is evidence of the effectiveness of the nation'smonitoring system.

Liang, from the National Health Commission,said increased surveillance measures, especially at fever clinics, along withadditional nucleic acid testing capacity and constant screening for mutation,are also key to China containing the virus.

In July and August, some 10 rounds of masstesting were carried out in Yangzhou, Jiangsu province, to handle a localoutbreak of COVID-19.

Wu Feng, head of the intensive care unit atthe Affiliated Hospital of Yangzhou University, said during a news briefingthat because the novel coronavirus has an incubation period and is transmitted"stealthily", it is extremely difficult to detect all infections atthe same time.

"As a result, even when the majorityof residents test negative for the virus in earlier rounds of mass testing, itis necessary to launch more tests at the right moment," he said.

Last month, when Manzhouli, Inner Mongoliaautonomous region, was hit by a local outbreak, the city's testing capacitystood at some 12,000 samples per day.

Guo Yanhong, an official at the NationalHealth Commission's medical supervision and administration bureau, said that bysending medical assistance teams and mobile testing facilities to the city, aswell as involving local third-party institutions, daily testing capacity inManzhouli quickly rose to 152,000 samples.

Guo said that as of last month, 30 millionsamples could be processed nationwide each day.

"Also, to lessen the public'sfinancial burden, most provincial-level regions have lowered the cost of a testper person to less than 40 yuan ($6.30) and to under 10 yuan for grouptests," she said.

Liang said, "We have accumulated acomplete and science-based tool kit to tackle the disease, including widespreadnucleic acid tests, the ability to trace close contacts, deliver treatment,mobilize local communities, and ensure normal transportation and livelihoods.

"It is not a single measure orstrategy that works, but a combination of multiple factors－for instance, an altruistic spirit,as well as coordination between government departments."

Striking a balance

As China becomes increasingly efficient intackling imported infections and local outbreaks, more emphasis has been placedon striking a balance between disease control requests and enabling people tolive normal lives.

Ma Xiaowei, minister of the National HealthCommission, said in an interview with Xinhua News Agency, "Virus controlwork should be precise and considerate, and local authorities should provide arange of supportive policies to reduce the impact on people's lives andproduction, and achieve the best results at the lowest possible socialcost."

The introduction of buffer zones in anumber of border and port areas is an example of such efforts, according toauthorities.

Liang said, "Villages in a port citywhere buffer zones are established can adopt stricter measures, includingsetting up checkpoints and imposing restrictions on people's movements, whilethe remaining areas of the city only need to impose regular disease controlmeasures.

"In the buffer zones, regularactivities can take place when there are no new cases, but regular screeningand health monitoring will be performed."

In Yunnan province, authorities in Ruili citypioneered this approach due to the long border with Myanmar.

Last year, the city experienced 42 localinfection clusters triggered by imported infections, disrupting theonce-booming jade trade.

According to Liang, "Establishingbuffer zones can provide an additional barrier to protect against the virusbeing imported, further reducing the likelihood of it spilling over fromhigh-risk areas."

On Dec 19, authorities in Ruili saidoffline jade vendors located outside strictly regulated zones could resumebusiness.

Zhang Guizhen, who owns a local jadebusiness, said: "On hearing this, I began tidying up my shop, preparinghand sanitizers, disinfectant and thermometers. It was great news for jadevendors."

In October, a local COVID-19 outbreak wasreported in Ejine Banner, Inner Mongolia, during the peak autumn touristseason. Local authorities said more than 9,000 visitors were stranded in thearea.

To help them return home while ensuringtheir health and safety, the authorities drew up plans for rail passengers,individual travelers, motorists and those using buses.

Xu Xiuzhen, a traveler from Shanghai, saidon the train journey home, "Even though we were stranded, we were treatedwarmly, with the local authorities providing us with sufficient protectiveequipment, medical products and food."

Comprehensive measures

As the new year dawns with the developmentof a number of vaccines and promising drugs to treat COVID-19, experts arediscussing a possible end to the pandemic.

Zhong Nanshan, a prominent respiratoryexpert, said that before China returns to pre-pandemic life, the global deathrate from COVID-19 should fall to about 0.1 percent. Last month, this rate wasestimated at around 1 percent to 2 percent.

In addition, the virus' basic reproductionrate, also known as R0, should be maintained at about 1 to 1.5, Zhong said. Thereproduction rate for the Delta variant－the dominant strain worldwide－is estimated to fall between 5 and 8.

To achieve such goals, Zhong said thenation should expand vaccination coverage, enforce regular disease controlmeasures at community level, and develop effective therapeutics.

As of Friday, more than 2.9 billionCOVID-19 vaccine doses had been administered on the mainland, according to theNational Health Commission.

Zhang Boli, an academician at the ChineseAcademy of Engineering, who is a leading traditional Chinese medicine expert,said the pandemic would likely stabilize in spring, when China might ease itscontrol policies.

"However, opening up completely willdepend on the global situation, especially outbreaks in some African countrieswhere the average vaccination rate is only about 10 percent," he said,adding that high alertness and close observation of new strains are stillneeded