Good News! China Might Shorten Quarantine Period to 3 days!

Good News! China Might Shorten Quarantine Period to 3 days!

China would possibly shorten quarantine period to 3 days at the minimum if infected cases can be more easily tracked and quarantined

China is mulling whether to further shorten the quarantine period and impose more precise anti-epidemic restrictions, as part of its efforts to optimize the COVID-19 response, according to health authorities.

Observers viewed it as a positive signal to adjust its anti-epidemic measures in a more science-based way so as to fit the changing epidemic situation. 

Commenting on these fresh actions, virologist Jin Dongyan from Hong Kong University said  that "it's good to see China's dynamic zero-COVID policy has always been dynamically adjusted as the epidemic situation changes. It is definitely more science-based." 

If infected cases can be more easily tracked and quarantined, it is possible to shorten their quarantine period to three days at the minimum, Jin noted. 

Neither BA.4 nor BA.5 show any big difference from other subvariants in terms of incubation periods. But data proves that most infected cases with BA.4 or BA.5 are prone to infect others within three days after a positive test, which means it is possible to shorten the quarantine period to three days at a minimum.　

Mass testing only covers regions of COVID-19 risks, State Council said

There is no need to carry out PCR testing for everyone in a district where the source of a COVID-19 outbreak and the chain of transmission are both clear and no community transmission is detected as judged by epidemiological survey, according to the State Council.

People in risk areas or having time and space overlap with the positive cases should undergo screenings.

Different PCR testing strategies within a district in a provincial capital, a city with a population of at least 10 million, or a regular city or village are made clear in the country's ninth edition of the National Health Commission's guideline for COVID-19 Diagnosis and Treatment.

"We will continue to collect and study new problems and difficulties that locals are facing in dealing with outbreaks in following the ninth COVID-19 prevention playbook, such as whether the quarantine period can be further shortened and low-risk areas can be more precisely classified," Wang Liping, a research fellow at the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (China CDC), said during a Thursday press briefing.

On June 28, China cut the period in centralized quarantine of international arrivals and close contacts of COVID-19 patients from 14 days to seven days, and it drew a clear standard on what constitutes medium- and high-risk areas in its latest updated COVID-19 prevention playbook. 

Source: Global Times, SHINE

COVID-19 Update July. 22nd

1. Shanghai: 

+3 local case

+9 imported COVID-19 case

2. Chinese mainland:

+106 local cases

+69 imported COVID-19 cases

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