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Holly Chik

Josephine Ma

China has reported its first Covid-19 deaths since January 2021, as the country battles a surge in Omicron cases in almost all provinces.
The National Health Commission (NHC) said on Saturday that the two deaths were reported in Jilin, the northeastern province worst hit by the current wave.
Jiao Yahui, director of the NHC’s Bureau of Medical Administration, said both patients were elderly with underlying conditions and had mild symptoms of Covid-19. One of them was vaccinated.
Jiao said their direct cause of death was their underlying conditions.
Jilin logged close to 80 per cent of the 2,157 new symptomatic coronavirus cases nationwide. And of the 1,713 asymptomatic cases in all, 537 were in Jilin.
China does not classify asymptomatic infections as confirmed cases.


China is battling its worst outbreak of locally transmitted cases since it contained the epidemic in Wuhan in 2020, with millions of people in lockdown to minimise the spread of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.
The country has reported more than 29,000 cases since the start of March, across 28 provinces, with more than 10,000 in Jilin alone.
Jiao said 95 per cent of the cases have minor to no symptoms, with less than 0.1 per cent of the patients in serious or critical condition.
“Omicron causes a short duration of symptoms and transmits quickly with stealth. Most of the cases have mild or no symptoms because of the features of the virus and a high vaccination rate in our country,” she said.
“Although patients with mild to no symptoms are no longer sent to designated hospitals, they should be isolated because they could transmit the virus to others,” she said.


Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the Chinese Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said the outbreak remained critical, and timely detection of all infections was key to cutting transmission chains.
“When we carry out mass testing, it has to be completed swiftly in one to three days,” he said.
“Three to four rounds of testing are enough to clear the cases in the community if done properly. But missing cases in the first rounds could mean cases will continue to be revealed in the eighth to tenth rounds of testing.”
Health officials again urged older people to get vaccinated, saying the incidence of side effects in the elderly was slightly lower than that in the young. Around 80 per cent of people aged over 60 have been fully vaccinated.
“It is extremely dangerous for the elderly to think that they have a lower chance of getting infected because they mostly stay at home or do not travel outside of rural areas,” said Zheng Zhongwei, the NHC official heading China’s Covid-19 vaccine development team.
“There are more asymptomatic carriers of the virus and they risk infecting the elderly if they visit.”
Officials in Chinese cities sacked as zero-Covid brings zero tolerance
China has punished two more Jilin officials, taking to 18 the total number of cadres disciplined for failures in controlling the outbreak.
The last time a Covid-19 death was reported in mainland China was on January 25 last year, also in Jilin province.
The southern tech hub of Shenzhen, which sacked eight officials in Futian district for falling short in controlling the outbreak, reported 46 new symptomatic and 31 asymptomatic cases.



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Two deaths reported in Jilin, the worst-hit province which logged nearly 80 per cent of new Covid-19 cases
Both patients were elderly with underlying conditions and had mild symptoms of Covid-19, health authorities say



Two deaths reported in Jilin, the worst-hit province in the current wave. Details on age and co-morbidities of the deceased not immediately available.


China reports first Covid-19 deaths since January 2021

Two deaths reported in Jilin, the worst-hit province which logged nearly 80 per cent of new Covid-19 cases Both patients were elderly with underlying conditions and had mild symptoms of Covid-19, health authorities say

Two deaths reported in Jilin, the worst-hit province which logged nearly 80 per cent of new Covid-19 cases

Both patients were elderly with underlying conditions and had mild symptoms of Covid-19, health authorities say