China reduces COVID-19 case number reporting as virus surges

BEIJING (AP) — China’s National Health Commission scaled down its daily COVID-19 report starting Wednesday in response to a sharp decline in PCR testing since the government eased antivirus measures after daily cases hit record highs.

A notice on the commission’s website said it stopped publishing daily figures on numbers of COVID-19 cases where no symptoms are detected since it was “impossible to accurately grasp the actual number of asymptomatic infected persons,” which have generally accounted for the vast majority of new infections. The only numbers they’re reporting are confirmed cases detected in public testing facilities.

This poses a key challenge for China as it relaxes its strict “zero-COVID” policy. With mass-PCR testing no longer obligatory and people with mild symptoms allowed to recuperate at home rather than in one of the field hospitals that became notorious for overcrowding and poor hygiene, it has grown more difficult to gauge the true number of cases.

Beijing's streets have grown eerily quiet, with lines forming outside fever clinics — the number of which has been increased from 94 to 303 — and at pharmacies, where cold and flu medications are harder to find.

Though authorities said they were sourcing millions of COVID-19 antigen rapid test kits for Beijing pharmacies, they remained difficult to obtain.

A Beijing resident surnamed Zhu said they developed a sore throat and a fever, but wasn’t able to confirm whether they had the coronavirus because of a lack of antigen test kits.

“Beijing is really confused right now,” Zhu said, declining to provide their full name to speak on what could be seen as a sensitive topic in China. “They made a complete 180-degree turn without even going through a transitionary period.”

Despite a push to boost...