BEIJING - Chinese health authorities have warned that it is still too early to ease coronavirus (COVID-19) measures as new clusters continue to emerge.
As reported by Reuters, in the past two weeks new COVID-19 cases have been confirmed in seven Chinese provinces, including Hubei which was the original epicentre of the pandemic. On Monday (11/5) Hubei’s capital Wuhan reported its first cluster of infections since the city’s lockdown was lifted in April.
According to China’s National Health Commission spokesman Mi Feng, the emergence of new clusters shows that mitigation measures cannot be eased although prevention and control efforts have normalised.
As of Monday, China has 82.926 confirmed COVID-19 cases with 78.189 recoveries and 4.633 deaths. The country’s capital Beijing currently has 13 cases still being treated and has temporarily banned all international flights entering the city.
“Even after the 13 patients have recovered and have been discharged from hospital, that does not mean there is zero risk afterwards,” said Beijing Municipal Health Commission Director Dr Lei Haichao.
The government has allowed recreational venues such as cinemas and museums to gradually reopen although the operating capacity should be restricted to less than 50%, said the China Culture Administration Association.
“The sealing of the city was once an extremely effective method for us in dealing with the epidemic, but now we need to find a balance between economic recovery and epidemic prevention and control,” Dr Lei said. (MS)