China's stretched health system braces for peak in COVID infections

just stop locking down. its killing yaz all. wakey wakey people

China reported less than 4,000 new symptomatic local COVID cases nationwide for Dec 22, and no new COVID deaths for a third consecutive day.

With one of the lowest Covid death tolls in the world, China has been routinely accused of downplaying infections and deaths for political reasons.

A June 2020 study of the country’s initial outbreak in Wuhan starting in late 2019 estimated 36,000 could have died at the time – 10 times the official figure.

A study published by the Lancet in April, which looked at Covid-related mortality in 74 countries and territories over 2020-2021, estimated there were 17,900 excess deaths in China over the period, compared with an official death toll of 4,820.

Authorities have narrowed the criteria for COVID deaths, prompting criticism from many disease experts

The new criteria from China raised concerns the government was seeking to disguise the true impact of relaxing its draconian zero-Covid controls after nearly three years of disruptive lockdowns and mandatory mass testing.

And better still, China actually cut its accumulated death toll by one on 20 December, bringing the total to 5,241.

And a peak within a week seems like fantasy-land talk, too. Let's hope they are right.

Deaths on the Chinese mainland are substantially underreported. A survey of Beijing's hospitals and funeral homes reveals a recent surge in funeral services, which is being attributed to the city's rapid rise in mortality.

The reason they don't publish that data is obvious to the world

China is using vaccines that don’t protect nearly as well against the variants, and the Chinese refuse to afford effective against BA.5, from international sources.

Lockdowns such as they implemented result in increased deaths, increased obesity, increased suicides and the devastation of the economy.

More than 3 years since the deceitful Chinese presented their gift to the world, Chinavirus, and still it keeps on giving.

I feel immensely sorry for those who've lost their nearest and dearest during this repugnant episode, which could so easily have been averted. Currently more than 6.5 million deaths worldwide, over 3 billion people infected.

I'm still coping with the after-effects of a serious Omicron infection, which I picked up on a flight back from Crete earlier this year, fully-immunised and masked...... Like so many people, I want compensation for the damage to my health and the suffering and distress caused - zero chance of this happening. The CCP just carry on regardless, as though they've done nothing wrong at all; just imagine the hell which would break loose if this had been caused by the Americans, or a European country - at least we may have received an apology.

China was trying to avoid a human virus that is unavoidable. Eventually, everyone will catch it, like we catch common colds and the flu every few years.

While the rest of the world was "flattening the curve", China's only plan was to lockdown everyone in China, restrict travel both domestically and internationally, all as ways to make the central govt gain more power to tell people what and when to do things.

To me, it seems like the Canadian govt got the correct mix of restricting freedoms, only when necessary, while opening up when possible and getting quality vaccines into arms. Hopefully, the world will learn, once again, from the example that Canada has put on display. Australia and NZ went too far with their restrictions, though some of what they did was excellent too.

The USA was never going to be great in restricting freedoms. It is a cultural thing. Thanks to the ex-Killer-in-Chief, about 2x the expected number of deaths happened. Trump should have been using the CDC and doing everything they suggested, not seeking political gain. He should have been seen at mass vaccination sites and gotten his on TV. There should have been public service advertisements showing him over and over and over, along with everyone in Congress, getting their vaccines. Lead by example.

Where I live, we never were "locked down". We were warned and had data about the virus in different parts of the region, by ZIP code and we were encouraged to stay home during real and predicted peaks. We use this information, even today, to choose where the risks are acceptable to meet with friends and hobby groups.

China - provide your people access to the data, but let them decide whether to stay home or go out.

To the Chinese people, the NH state moto seems apt - "Live Free or Die". There are things worse than death.

BTW, Japan seems to have been very effective. I believe that is mainly due to the overall better health of the people in Japan compared to Europe and North Americans.

Canada’s death rate, in fact, is 29 times higher than Japan’s, 50 times higher than New Zealand’s and 55 times higher than Australia’s.

The US's death rate is over 1.68x that of Canada. US Citizens would never have allowed NZ or Australia's lock downs. There would have been killings. Freedom of movement and association is truly a core value in the USA and laws exist to ensure those aren't infringed. Whether the federal govt has the authority to restrict those things for short periods of time, say less than 1 yr, would raise constitutional questions.

The West overestimated Covid deaths. In the UK, if you had asymptomatic Covid and then got hit by a truck, you were a Covid death. In the first year of the pandemic, Japan's mortality rate went down.

The Chinese regime have got as much (politically) as they could out of Covid and will now get on with life.

Excess deaths are normal in a pandemic, just as in a bad flu season. There are limits to what you can do. Lockdowns themselves carry risks of increased mortality as a consequence of the hits to education, health and the economy.