Chinese Lunar New Year is just around the corner, and as Chinese people flock back home for family reunions, what is the country's COVID-19 situation at present?

With medical services returning to normal and COVID response measures in place at all levels and in all sorts of venues, a safe and sound Spring Festival holiday is expected, according to officials and health experts.

RETURNING TO NORMAL

The treatment of COVID-19 patients is smooth and orderly as day-to-day diagnoses and treatments gradually resume, Guo Yanhong, director of the Health Emergency Response Office of the National Health Commission, said at a press conference of the State Council joint COVID-19 prevention and control mechanism on Thursday.

The number of severe COVID-19 cases in hospitals nationwide reached its peak on Jan 5 and has dropped by 44.3 percent as of Tuesday, Guo said.

She added that the numbers of patients in fever clinics and emergency rooms peaked on Dec 23 and Jan 2, respectively, and have decreased by 94 percent and 44 percent as of Tuesday.

COVID patient numbers have been declining in day-to-day medical services centers, with 99.5 percent of outpatients and 85 percent of hospitalized patients nationwide being non-COVID-19 patients on Tuesday, Guo said.

As for the newly detected XAY.2 variant of the coronavirus, Chang Zhaorui, a research fellow at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, said it is yet to be detected in China. Chang warned that personal protection measures are still necessary, and that inbound travelers who have COVID-19 symptoms should monitor their health properly and seek medical treatment when necessary.

ENHANCING GRASSROOTS AND RURAL RESPONSE

Community-level and rural clinics are gearing up their COVID response measures as the Spring Festival travel rush is in full swing.

Guo Yanhong said that 98.8 percent of township-level clinics and community health centers across the country have set up fever clinics, which are required to maintain normal operations during the holidays.

Chinese health authorities have also provided community-level medical facilities with the necessary equipment. Jiao Yahui, head of the Bureau of Medical Administration under the NHC, said that 1.17 million finger-clip oximeters have been distributed to village clinics across the country.

As of Thursday, community-level medical institutions in China have been equipped with nearly 2.48 million finger-clip oximeters and 191,000 oxygen generators.

Moreover, 31 provinces and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps have established a special contact system to reach key groups in a timely manner and address their needs, as efforts are being made to distribute more medical supplies to rural areas and send more medical personnel to communities, said Mao Dezhi, deputy head of the Department of Rural Cooperative Economy under the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs.

SAFE HOLIDAYS

"The travel rush this year is the first of its kind since the country's COVID-19 prevention and control work entered a new stage, with a notable recovery of passenger flows," said Zhou Min, a Ministry of Transport (MOT) official.

To reduce infection risks, the MOT has stepped up efforts to enforce ventilation and sanitation measures at transport hubs and strengthen the protection and management of relevant personnel.

The ministry is also raising the quality of transport services and its capacity to ensure safer trips, with measures such as promoting contactless ticket purchases and ticket-checking services.

It is estimated that over 60 percent of trips during this year's holiday season will be road trips. To ensure the safety of road travel, the MOT has taken targeted measures to maintain a well-sanitized, sterilized and ventilated environment at highway service stops with high traffic flows, and has set up special zones at eligible stops to treat travelers infected with COVID-19 or feeling ill, Zhou said.

Following China's latest anti-COVID protocols, local culture and tourism authorities are also making efforts to ensure both a sound COVID response and the smooth operations of cultural and tourism sites and activities.

Routine response measures should be implemented fully at relevant venues to minimize virus transmission risks, said Li Xiaoyong, a Ministry of Culture and Tourism official.