Following is a summary of current health news briefs.
China reports two new COVID deaths for Dec 18 vs none a day earlier
China reported two new COVID-19 deaths for Dec 18, compared with none the previous day, increasing the nation’s fatalities to 5,237, the National Health Commission said on Monday. The country reported 1,995 new symptomatic COVID-19 infections on Dec. 18, compared with 2,097 a day earlier,
New COVID model predicts over 1 million deaths in China through 2023
China’s abrupt lifting of stringent COVID-19 restrictions could result in an explosion of cases and over a million deaths through 2023, according to new projections from the U.S.-based Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME). According to the group’s projections, cases in China would peak around April 1, when deaths would reach 322,000. About a third of China’s population will have been infected by then, IHME Director Christopher Murray said.
Streets deserted in China’s cities as new COVID surge looms
Streets in major Chinese cities were eerily quiet on Sunday as people stayed home to protect themselves from a surge in COVID-19 cases that has hit urban centres from north to south. China is in the first of an expected three waves of COVID cases this winter, according to the country’s chief epidemiologist, Wu Zunyou. Further waves will come as people follow the tradition of returning en masse to their home areas for the Lunar New Year holiday next month, he said.
Uganda president lifts all Ebola-related movement restrictions
Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni lifted all Ebola-related movement restrictions on Saturday, saying the East African country had made progress in curbing the deadly disease.
Museveni rescinded restrictions on the disease’s epicentre in the district of Mubende, which logged 66 cases and 29 deaths, and in the Kassanda region with 49 cases and 21 deaths.
Macau government cancels COVID risk zones for mainland China
Macau’s government said on Monday that it would cancel its regulations on risk zones in mainland China starting from Tuesday, the latest unwinding of stringent COVID-19 rules that have hammered revenues in the world’s biggest gambling hub. In addition, all arrivals into Macau via the mainland, including from overseas, need to show a negative COVID test conducted within the last 72 hours, versus 48 hours previously, the government said.
In COVID-hit Beijing, funeral homes and crematoriums are busy
Hearses bearing the dead lined the driveway to a designated COVID-19 crematorium in the Chinese capital on Saturday while workers at the city’s dozen funeral homes were busier than normal, days after China reversed tight pandemic restrictions. In recent days in Beijing the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant has hit services from catering to parcel deliveries. Funeral homes and crematoriums across the city of 22 million are also struggling to keep up with demand as more workers and drivers testing positive for coronavirus call in sick.
‘I don’t trust it:’ Vaccine hesitancy lingers even as China COVID cases surge
Headhunter Candice knows the COVID-19 infections engulfing Beijing and much of China will soon hit her home of Shenzhen city, but she would rather face it without a vaccine booster, saying she fears potential side effects more than the virus. The 28-year-old took two doses of Sinovac’s CoronaVac last year, hoping it would make travel easier, but she has since grown more sceptical, citing stories from friends about health impacts, as well as similar health warnings on social media.
(With inputs from agencies.)
