News Analysis
Amid China’s major COVID-19 outbreak, panic buying of pain relievers and fever medicines has led to shortages in the country and abroad. Experts say the current rate of infections could breed new virus variants and threaten the international community.
The Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) sudden move to abandon its zero-COVID policy without a plan forward left the medical system with little time to prepare. Most patients in this new wave of infections show more severe symptoms—high fever, cough, and lung infections—than the mild symptoms usually associated with Omicron coronavirus variants.
On Dec. 7, the Chinese State Council issued the “New Ten Rules” on epidemic control, abruptly ending pandemic measures it had strictly enforced for the past three years. The rules include relaxing measures such as allowing self-isolation at home and no longer requiring negative PCR tests and health codes for cross-regional travel….