China sees decline in respiratory disease cases

BEIJING -- China has seen a decreasing trend in the overall diagnosis and treatment volume of cases related to respiratory diseases in emergency and outpatient departments of medical facilities, a health official said on Sunday.

Mi Feng, a spokesperson for the National Health Commission, told a press conference that fever clinics at the primary level have effectively met the medical needs of patients.

He urged efforts to strengthen the monitoring and assessment of the diagnosis and treatment of respiratory diseases, as well as to enhance the coordinated allocation of medical resources.

As for new variants of COVID-19, JN.1 appears to have risen notably since November according to global monitoring data, and has become one of the leading variants in some countries, said Chang Zhaorui, a research fellow at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

The public health risk of this variant strain in China is relatively low, Chang said, noting that the prevalence of COVID in the country remains at a relatively low level.

So far, China has not detected any unknown new viruses or bacteria in the monitoring of respiratory disease pathogens, the expert said.