BEIJING, Dec. 20 (BNA): Cities across China scrambled to install hospital beds and build fever-screening clinics, as the United States said Beijing’s sudden decision to let the virus wash away was a concern to the world.
Reuters reported that China this month suddenly began dismantling its strict “zero COVID” mass lockdown regime after protests against restrictions that have largely kept the virus at bay for three years but at significant costs to society and the world’s second-largest economy.
Now, as the virus sweeps through a country of 1.4 billion people who lack natural immunity after having been protected for so long, there is growing concern about potential deaths, viral mutations and the impact, once again, on the economy.
“We know that anytime a virus is spreading, it is in the wild, and has the potential to mutate and pose a threat to people everywhere,” said State Department spokesman Ned.
Price said on Monday, adding that the virus outbreak was also a concern for the Chinese economy and, in turn, global growth.
Beijing has reported five COVID-related deaths, after two cases on Monday were the first deaths reported in weeks.
In total, China has reported only 5,242 coronavirus deaths since the outbreak of the epidemic in the central city of Wuhan in late 2019, a very low toll by global standards.
But there is growing suspicion that your statistics are capturing the full impact of a disease spreading in cities after China dropped restrictions including most mandatory testing on December 7.
Since then, some hospitals have been flooded, pharmacies emptied of medicine, and the streets have been unusually quiet as residents, whether sick or worried about contracting the disease, stayed home.
Some health experts estimate that 60% of people in China – equivalent to 10% of the world’s population – could be infected over the coming months, and that more than 2 million people could die.
SM