There have been a number of incidents where people have been detained after clashing with police for refusing to take swab tests or follow lockdown regulations.
The government has already said that from Sunday onwards, the management of the disease will be downgraded from a category A – which puts it alongside the most deadly diseases such as bubonic plague and cholera – to a category B.
The change removes the obligation on local authorities to impose strict controls, such as lockdowns and restrictions on movement, and returns disease control to the health system.
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Shanghai hospitals overwhelmed as Covid cases spike
Zhang Boli, a member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering said last month that downgrading the disease would provide “a legal basis for further optimisation of prevention and control measures to some extent”.
Saturday’s notice said the new classification meant the work of epidemic control and prevention is “entering a new era” and “facing new tasks”, which means the legislation should be adjusted accordingly.
However it said that actions that disrupt “the normal medical order” – including counterfeiting, smuggling and price gouging, as well has disrupting the work of medical staff – should be “strictly punished” to “resolutely maintain national security and social stability”.
Many hospitals and clinics are struggling to cope with the number of patients and are also facing shortages of medical supplies.
Supplies of thermometers, oximeters and medicines such as Ibuprofen and paracetamol are running low, sending prices soaring and prompting repeated warnings from the authorities against panic buying and hoarding.
The government started targeting price gouging last month, with offenders facing potential fines of up to 5 million yuan (US$730,000).
The notice also told the courts and police to follow a policy of “fewer arrests, and cautious prosecutions and detentions” and focus on defusing and resolving conflicts when addressing minor offences.
