China says COVID outbreak has infected 80% of population

The possibility of a big COVID-19 rebound in China over the next two or three months is remote as 80% of people have been infected, says a prominent government scientist on Saturday.

The mass movement of people during the ongoing Lunar New Year holiday period may spread the pandemic, boosting infections in some areas.

A second COVID wave is unlikely in the near term, Wu Zunyou, chief epidemiologist at the China Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, said on a social media platform.

Hundreds of millions of Chinese are travelling across the country for holiday reunions that had been suspended under recently eased COVID curbs, raising fears of fresh outbreaks in rural areas less equipped to manage large outbreaks.

Video – China marks New Year with COVID-19 concerns:

China has passed the peak of COVID patients in fever clinics, emergency rooms and with critical conditions, said a National Health Commission official on Thursday.

Nearly 60,000 people with COVID had died in hospital as of the 12 January; roughly a month after China abruptly dismantled its zero-COVID policy, according to government data.

Some experts said that figures probably vastly under counts the full impact, as it excludes those who die at home, and because many doctors have said they are discouraged from citing COVID as a cause of death.

Video – COVID-19 cases in China reach new record: