Tag: COVID-19 Pandemic

Beijing —  Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. The Chuiyangliu hospital in the city’s east was packed with newly arrived patients on Thursday. By midmorning beds had run out, even as ambulances continued to bring those in need. Hard-pressed nurses and doctors rushed to take information and triage the most urgent cases. The surge in severely ill people needing hospital care follows China abandonment of its most severe pandemic restrictions last…

Hong Kong/Washington —  Wang Xiaodong lives in Qatar, where he imports Chinese-made construction material. His home on the Arabian Peninsula is thousands of kilometers away from his family’s village deep in the mountains of China’s southern Yunnan province. The hamlet is so remote that few of the 600 villagers ever visit a hospital, and just last week, Wang Xiaodong’s mother told him that COVID-19 had arrived to infect “everyone in the village.” A few people, mostly older folks, died, as did a 17-year-old girl, he told VOA Mandarin. Wang Xiaodong’s…

BEIJING/HONG KONG/GENEVA —  State media in China played down the severity of a surge of COVID-19 infections on Tuesday, while its scientists briefed the World Health Organization, which has been seeking detailed information about the evolution of the virus. The global body had invited the scientists to present detailed data on viral sequencing at a technical advisory group meeting on Tuesday, and has asked China to share data on hospitalizations, deaths and vaccinations. The WHO would communicate later, probably at a Wednesday news briefing, its spokesperson said after the meeting.…

China objected Tuesday to new COVID-19 testing requirements for Chinese travelers that has been put in place by a number of countries, saying the measures “lack scientific basis.” Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson Mao Ning told reporters at a briefing that China could institute “countermeasures based on the principle of reciprocity.” China has seen a surge in COVID-19 infections, while other governments have faulted China for not being transparent about its infection data. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced last week that air passengers from China will have…

BEIJING —  Australia and Canada have joined a growing list of countries requiring travelers from China to take a COVID-19 test prior to boarding their flight, as China battles a nationwide outbreak of the coronavirus after abruptly easing restrictions that were in place for much of the pandemic. Australian health authorities said Sunday that from Jan 5. all air travelers from mainland China, Hong Kong or Macao will need to show a negative COVID-19 test taken within two days of their departure. Canadian authorities announced similar measures that will also…