No Beds, IV Drips in Parking Lots... Aftermath of China's COVID Crisis

After Policy Shift to With-Corona, Cases Surge
Chinese Netizens Say "Had to Go to Parking Lot for IV Drip"

Photo by Weibo screen capture.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Since China shifted its policy from 'Zero COVID' to 'With COVID,' the number of confirmed cases has surged, leading to a medical crisis.

Recently, videos have been continuously uploaded on Chinese social networking services (SNS) such as Weibo, showing patients receiving IV drips while sitting not only in hospital corridors but also on the streets. In particular, some patients parked their cars in hospital parking lots and received IV drips inside their vehicles.

A Chinese netizen said, "I had a mild fever all afternoon, and fortunately, I was able to receive an IV drip in the hospital corridor. After the infusion, my body temperature returned to normal, but I have not fully recovered yet. I hope everything gets better."

Another netizen also said, "There were so many patients that I couldn't enter the examination room. Those who wanted to receive an IV drip had to drive their cars and get it in the parking lot."

Photo by Weibo

Earlier, on the 7th, Chinese authorities announced the 'Notice on 10 Additional Optimization Measures for Epidemic Prevention,' which significantly eased COVID-19 prevention policies. This included mostly lifting PCR (polymerase chain reaction) testing, confirmed patient facility quarantine, long-term residential lockdowns, and interregional travel bans.

However, in a situation where the country was not prepared to transition to 'With COVID,' the Chinese government’s easing of prevention measures has led to aftershocks such as the collapse of the medical system.

As the spread of COVID-19 intensifies in China, foreign media reports indicate that crematories and mortuaries in places like Beijing are overwhelmed.

Hong Kong media Ming Pao reported, "Recently, COVID-19-related deaths have surged in Beijing," adding, "Hospitals’ morgues and funeral homes in the city are running out of space to store the increasing number of bodies, resulting in bodies being piled on the morgue floors."

Additionally, a crematory worker in Beijing, interviewed by the U.S. Wall Street Journal (WSJ), lamented, "Since the easing of COVID-19 prevention measures, work has surged. We are operating the crematory 24 hours a day, but I don’t think we can continue like this."