Chinese CDC to adjust COVID-19 stats publishing frequency

Figures related to COVID-19 will be published by the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention once a month on its website after the disease is officially downgraded from category A to category B starting Jan 8, the center said on Tuesday.

Yin Wenwu, a senior doctor at the center, said it will publish the number of hospitalizations, critical patients and deaths, while the number of close contacts will no longer be reported.

The report will also no longer differentiate between imported COVID-19 cases and domestic ones, Yin said.

The center will adjust the frequency of its COVID-19 reports based on epidemic situation, and eventually the reports will be made once a month, which is standard practice for category B diseases, he said.

The reporting of COVID-19 cases will be based on the number of hospitalized patients, the positive results of nucleic acid tests and antigen tests that are reported, and the monitoring of key groups, key venues and the mutation of variants, he said.

Chang Jile, deputy director of the National Administration of Disease Prevention and Control, said the country has two category A infectious diseases, 27 category B diseases and 11 category C diseases.

Once COVID-19 is officially downgraded, epidemic control measures will focus on key areas, institutions and groups, and restrictions on people's movements will be minimized to reduce the impact on people's daily lives, he said.

Apart from nursing and welfare homes, other places will no longer check nucleic acid test results, and there will be no division of high-risk and low-risk areas, he said.