Since the rate of infection and the harmful effects of COVID-19 on human health are still higher than that of the flu, it is too early to consider Omicron-caused COVID-19 as a seasonal flu - said Liang Wannian, head of the COVID-19 response expert group of the National Health Commission of China.
For individuals, the rate of severe illness is decreasing, but with Omicron's rapid spread, it can push the incidence rate to skyrocket in a short time and increase the number of cases to a high level, meaning that the number of severe cases and deaths can also be high - Mr. Liang said in an interview with China's central broadcaster CCTV. Experts explain that in this sense, the number of severe cases and the number of deaths can cause great damage to a region and a country.
Mr. Liang said that due to China's good implementation of COVID-19 prevention and recent misunderstandings that the pandemic has ended, some local governments and people have relaxed their efforts to fight the epidemic. Mr. Liang warned that this is not the right time to abandon the existing virus control policy, and if so, the achievements over the past two years will be ineffective.
Mr. Liang affirmed that the main strategy to prevent imported cases and the return of epidemics in the country, and the zero-COVID policy has been proven effective in ensuring the health and protection of people's lives, while also helping to balance epidemic prevention and economic development.
Mr. Liang said that because the pandemic is far from over, it is still the main threat to China, as reflected in recent outbreaks caused by Omicron in many provinces, so China should comply with its current policy. According to this expert, Omicron variation causes mild disease and in many cases has no symptoms, so it can easily spread from one community to another and from one country to another.
Data compiled by China's National Health Commission on March 21 showed that the country had 1,947 confirmed cases and 2,384 cases with no symptoms on March 20 alone. "With current virus control and prevention measures, China has effectively prevented infections. We are racing against the virus and must act quickly to contain the epidemic from water eggs".
