As the number of COVID-19 cases in China increased and resources became scarce, hospitals and funeral homes in the 1.4 billion-person country faced extreme pressure on Wednesday. The rigorous Zero-Covid restrictions that China has been enforcing for almost three years have just lately started to be lifted. This sudden shift has started an outbreak that is quickly depleting hospitals across the country.
The virus is spreading “essentially unchecked” across the country, experts say, and is probably infecting close to a million people per day. The international community has expressed concerns about the reported data, however, after China’s National Health Commission (NHC) announced that it will stop publishing daily data and the country recorded zero deaths for seven straight days.
A number of nations have recently placed travel restrictions on citizens of China
China reported three additional Covid-related deaths on Tuesday, up from one on Monday, but these figures conflict with what funeral homes are claiming and also go against what far less populous nations experienced upon reopening. According to reports, funeral facilities are completely booked, doing 200 funerals daily, up from 30 to 50 before China opened up.
Hospitals have also stated that they are “very busy.” Under the condition of anonymity, an ambulance driver told Reuters, “I’ve been doing this work for 30 years, and this is the busiest I’ve ever known it.” According to a pharmacy employee working in the emergency room, “almost all of the patients have COVID.” Since hospitals don’t stock COVID-specific medications, they have instead been giving patients medication to treat specific symptoms. Additionally, a number of nations have recently placed travel restrictions on citizens of China as the international community continues to be concerned about epidemics of this nature. Restrictions have been put in place by Japan, Malaysia, and India, and the USA is apparently considering doing the same.