Beijing: China has reported around 60,000 Covid-related deaths in just 35 days. This is the first major death count released by the government since the zero-covid policy was lifted early in December.
Jiao Yahui, head of the Bureau of Medical Administration under the National Health Commission told the media that 59,938 people died between December 8, 2022, and January 12, 2023, due to Covid infection, reported AFP. 5,503 deaths were caused by respiratory failure directly linked to coronavirus. 54,435 deaths were due to underlying disease combined with Covid, said the official.
However, the official data pertains to deaths recorded at medical facilities alone. Many experts think the actual count is likely to be higher. The UN and several nations have accused Beijing of underreporting the number of Covid deaths. Health officials in China on Wednesday asserted that dwelling on the exact number is not necessary.
The average age for the dead is 80.3 years and 90% of the fatalities are among people above 65 years old. Millions of people aged 60+ in China are unvaccinated.
China has revised its methodology for categorising Covid deaths and has decided to count only those who die due to respiratory failure caused by the coronavirus. The WHO said the new definition of "too narrow". WHO has been asking China to provide more rapid, regular, reliable data on hospitalisation and deaths, said chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. The organisation also asked for viral sequencing to detect any new possible variants.