London, Jan 11 (IANS) Almost 90 per cent of people in China’s third most populous province have now been infected with Covid-19, a top local official has said, as the country battles an unprecedented surge in cases, media reported.
Kan Quancheng, director of the health commission for central Henan province, told a press conference that “as of January 6, 2023, the province’s Covid infection rate is 89 per cent,” The Guardian reported.
With a population of 99.4 million, the figures suggest about 88.5 million people in Henan may now have been infected.
Visits to fever clinics peaked on December 19, Kan said, “after which it showed a continuous downward trend.”
The opening of China’s borders on Sunday was one of the last steps in the dismantling of the country’s zero-Covid regime, which began last month after historic protests and has led to a huge wave of infections.
Covid cases are expected to soar further as the country celebrates lunar new year later this month, with millions set to travel from big cities to visit vulnerable older relatives in the countryside, The Guardian reported.
In the first wave of pre-holiday travel, official data showed 34.7 million people travelled domestically on Saturday – up by more than a third compared with last year, according to state media.
Meanwhile, the top adviser shaping China’s coronavirus response insists winter was the best time for the country to reopen from zero-Covid when considering vaccination uptake and waning immunity, according to his interview with state broadcaster CCTV, the media reported.
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