Virus death toll in China's capital shows further rise

death toll in latest COVID-19 surge in China’s capital Beijing has risen incrementally, as feverish clinic patients and an increase in funeral business point to a widening outbreak after an easing of strict virus containment regulations.

Unofficial reports suggest a widespre wave of new coronavirus cases, and relatives of victims and people who work in funeral business said deaths tied to COVID-19 were increasing. Those people spoke on condition of not being identified for fear of retribution, official policy and direction of latest outbreak remain cloaked in uncertainty and confusion.

National Health Commission on Tuesday said five newly recorded fatalities, all in Beijing, h taken country’s total death toll to 5,242 — relatively low by global standards but potentially set to increase substantially following moves by government to step away from “zero-COVID” policy of lockdowns, quarantines and compulsory testing that has staggered economy and prompted rare anti-government protests.

With people testing and recuperating at home, China has said it is no longer possible to keep an accurate count of new case numbers, making it substantially more difficult to gauge state of current wave of infection and its direction. Some scientific models have estimated numbers will rise with an eventual death toll in tens or hundreds of thousands.

China is trying to persue reluctant seniors and ors at risk to get vaccinated, apparently with only moderate success. Vaccination centers visited over recent days have been largely empty and re has been no major publicity drive in entirely state-controlled media.

or major concern is shoring up health resources in smaller cities and vast rural hinterland ahe of January’s Lunar New Year travel rush, which will see migrant workers returning to ir hometowns.

Numbers of fever clinics have been expanded in both urban and rural areas and people have been asked to stay home unless seriously ill to preserve resources. Hospitals are also running short on staff, and reports say workers have been asked to return to ir posts as long as y aren’t feverish.

Chinese health authorities count only those who died directly from COVID-19, excluding deaths blamed on underlying conditions such as diabetes and heart disease that raise risks of serious illness.

In many or countries, guidelines stipulate that any death where coronavirus is a factor or contributor is counted as a COVID-19 related.

China h long hailed its restrictive “zero-COVID” approach as keeping case numbers and deaths relatively low, comparing itself favorably to U.S., where death toll has topped 1.1 million.

Yet policy of lockdowns, travel restrictions, mandatory testing and quarantines placed China’s society and national economy under enormous stress, apparently convincing ruling Communist Party to heed outside vice and alter its strategy.