Xinjiang conducts intense screening, but virus controllable with China's experience in epidemic control fight
Global Times
By Hu Yuwei Source: Global Times Published: 2020/7/17 22:48:40
China's experience in epidemic control makes virus controllable
Despite concerns over Xinjiang's newly reported COVID-19 cases, epidemiologists advised the public not to panic as Xinjiang is unlikely to be the new epicenter of a second-wave outbreak, given China's fruitful experience in previous rounds of epidemic.
Xinjiang is determined to conduct intense screening to identify all nucleic acid-positive ones, asymptomatic infected people and their close contacts, official said at a meeting on local disease prevention on Friday.
Sporadic cases in China's long and tough battle against the virus are appearing but generally controllable, experts said, but that stringent screening and tightened control measures are a must.
Northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region reported five confirmed COVID-19 cases and eight asymptomatic ones in Urumqi on Friday, raising the total number of confirmed cases in Xinjiang to six and asymptomatic ones to 11, while 135 are under medical observation, the local health authority reported on Friday.
Public concern rose in the past 24 hours as one confirmed female coronavirus patient and three asymptomatic cases were reported in Urumqi on Thursday. It ended a run of more than 140 days of no confirmed cases in the region. An epidemiological investigation on the source of her infection is ongoing.
"There might be a small-scale outbreak in Xinjiang in the following days, but controllable, and Xinjiang is unlikely to become a new epicenter for a second-wave outbreak given the advanced experience that Beijing and Northeast Chinese cities already have in dealing with a fresh outbreak," Tao Lina, a Beijing-based epidemiologists, told the Global Times on Friday.
"As Xinjiang is less populated than Beijing, it should be relatively easy to control the spread," Tao said. He urged quicker procedures of epidemiological findings to trace the source of the virus.
Overall epidemic prevention measures were intensified on Friday to control people's flow amid outbreak risks.
Xinjiang should take strict measures to curb the virus spread, prevent imported cases and strengthen testing in densely populated areas, Xinjiang's Party chief Chen Quanguo said on Thursday at a Party meeting.
Chen has urged local departments to improve information dissemination to the public in a timely manner.
Given the increasing transparency and accuracy of China's disease report system, the local authority cannot conceal the outbreak if it regularly updates the public, experts said.
"But they must be more efficient in releasing results," Tao told the Global Times on Friday.
Officials also emphasized the need to tighten grid management in communities and rural areas, calling on further screening at fever clinics in the region's hospitals.
Around 89 percent of flights in and out of Urumqi were cancelled on Friday, with several airlines, such as Juneyao Air and Donghai Airlines, requiring passengers in and out Urumqi to show a negative nucleic acid test within seven days, and to make sure their health codes are in the safe status.
Those who fail to meet the requirements will undergo 14-day quarantine for medical observation, Juneyao Air announced on Friday.
Bus services in Urumqi's neighboring city - Changji Hui Autonomous Prefecture - have been suspended, with all front-line workers being required to take nucleic acid tests. All vehicles will be thoroughly sterilized during the temporary suspension.
The Fengman district in Jilin, a city which survived a previous outbreak in Northeast China, has been strengthening its health screening procedures for those coming from Xinjiang since June 25.
Urumqi authorities also launched an emergency guarantee mechanism to strengthen supervision on food price speculation to ensure stable prices for rice, meat and vegetables.
As the national battle against the virus becomes more regular, sporadic cases are likely, but panic is inadvisable, Tao told the Global Times.
However, because of the coronavirus' unknown source and transmission route, tightened control and extended screening remain significant, as some asymptomatic people could transmit the virus, Tao said.
Tao called for the speedier publishing of genetic sequencing results of cases in Urumqi to determine if its virus strain is similar to that of Beijing's Xinfadi outbreak.
"As the epidemic continues to spread globally, China is still at risk of epidemic resurgence," Wang Guangfa, one of the top Chinese medical advisors who participated in virus control in Wuhan, told the Global Times on Friday.
Xinjiang must move to narrow down the scope to risky communities, said Wang. "Beijing's experience tells us that at least 50 percent of confirmed cases are found in early-stage screening."
Wang recommends testing people only in key areas because "blind testing is not conducive to concentrating valuable resources."
"Xinjiang is able to deal with the current situation," Wang said, adding that experts and medics from other provinces and regions will immediately assist if there is a large-scale outbreak.
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