China's Quarantine Authorities Closely Monitor With-Corona Policy, "Considering Additional Measures"

Chinese Government to End Quarantine for Overseas Arrivals Next Month
Health Authorities "Closely Monitoring New Variant Emergence"
Supply Situation Checked Amid Concerns Over Cold Medicine Stockpiling

On the 2nd, the arrival hall at Incheon Airport was crowded with tourists and arrivals following the lifting of the mandatory first-day PCR test for overseas entrants. / Yeongjongdo - Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Jinju] As China pushes forward with its "With Corona" policy, quarantine authorities are also considering additional measures and response plans.

On the 27th, quarantine authorities stated regarding China's abolition of facility quarantine and polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests for overseas arrivals, "We are closely monitoring China's epidemic situation and the possibility of new variant emergence, and are reviewing the necessity of additional measures."

The day before, the Chinese government announced that starting from the 8th of next month, it will abolish the 5-day facility quarantine and 3-day self-quarantine for overseas arrivals. PCR testing after entry will also be eliminated.

Since China transitioned to "With Corona" by abolishing routine full PCR testing on the 7th of this month, confirmed cases, severe patients, and deaths have surged dramatically.

Taiwan's Central News Agency and others reported on the 22nd, citing a leaked meeting document from China's National Health Commission (NHC), that 248 million people were infected between the 1st and 20th of this month. This accounts for 17.56% of China's total population.

With the removal of quarantine for overseas arrivals in China starting next month, the number of Chinese visitors to neighboring countries such as Korea is expected to increase significantly.

Quarantine authorities recently added China to the list of "targeted quarantine" countries and strengthened entry screening due to the spread of COVID-19 in China. Generally, the fever threshold for screening symptomatic arrivals is 37.5 degrees Celsius. For arrivals from countries designated as targeted quarantine, the fever threshold is 37.3 degrees Celsius. Other overseas entry restrictions related to COVID-19 are not currently applied.

Authorities are also closely monitoring whether the shortage of antipyretic analgesics in China will affect the supply of cold medicine domestically. There are concerns that imports of raw materials for Chinese-made antipyretic analgesics may be disrupted or that hoarding of cold medicine for export from China may occur.

The Ministry of Health and Welfare stated that it is continuously communicating with pharmacist organizations to check the supply status of cold medicines. The Korean Pharmaceutical Association sent an official letter to 16 city and provincial branches yesterday, requesting that when pharmacies sell cold medicines or respiratory disease treatments, members actively guide customers to purchase only appropriate amounts according to symptoms.