Beijing upgrade measures against Covid-19 importation

File photo: AFP

All inbound passengers arriving Beijing are required to receive nucleic acid tests and undergo centralized quarantine starting Wednesday, with the city reporting its first domestically transmitted novel coronavirus case linked to an imported case on Monday.

For those returning to the country through other ports but arriving in Beijing within 14 days, they also must take a nucleic acid tests and undergo quarantine and observation at designated isolation sites, according to a notice released by the local government Tuesday morning.

Fees for isolation and observation should be taken on by the travelers themselves, and the expenses for nucleic acid tests should be covered whether they have basic or commercial medical insurance, the notice said.

Beijing had 16 new imported novel coronavirus cases in the 12 hours from midnight to noon on Monday, bringing the total number of infections from overseas to 138 as of the end of Monday, according to the city’s health commission.

Of newly confirmed imported cases, 10 were from the United Kingdom, two from Spain, two from the United States, and one each from Greece and Mexico, the commission said. The capital also reported five new suspected cases on Monday involving inbound travelers.

A locally transmitted case connected to an imported one was reported in Haidian district on Monday, marking the first such case reported in the capital.

By midnight Monday, a total of 416 domestic cases had been registered in the capital, with 392 patients cured and released from hospital.

Customs staff asks a passenger about his personal information after he arrived in Beijing, on March 21, 2020. [Photo/Xinhua]

China sets up three lines of defence against imported COVID-19 cases

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The Chinese center for disease control and prevention (CDC) said China has set up three lines of defense against the possible impact of COVID-19 imported cases, including surveillance at entry points and quarantine observation.

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The CDC's first line of defense is customs screening

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The second line of defense is placement into isolated observation for 14 days

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The third line of defense is the transfer of symptomatic patients to a hospital to be reviewed by a medical doctor.

So far, imported cases from China have largely been stuck in the first and second phases, while no one has yet to reach the third phase, suggesting that the three lines of defense are well positioned to prevent the re-emergence of COVID-19 imported cases.

Asymptomatic patients are not spreading the disease to the public as they have been in close contact with confirmed patients and were all kept in quarantine, CDC said, adding that this group will be transferred to hospital for treatment once symptoms appear.

Initial reports shows that the time of detoxification of COVID-19 is longer than that of SARS and influenza, and there is still a need to accumulate experience and data to observe the new disease, according to experts at the Department of Infectious Diseases of Peking University First Hospital.

Diverting international flights to neighboring airports to guard Beijing

Photo: CGTN

Starting Monday, all international flights to Beijing must first divert to one of 12 Chinese cities before they are allowed to enter the capital, China's Civil Aviation Administration (CAAC) said Sunday amid mounting headlines brought on by lengthy lines of arriving passengers in the city. 

CAAC said the move would better ensure no new cases broke out in Beijing. The capital city is burdened with becoming the frontline against imported cases and rising epidemics overseas, Chinese analysts said. 

The new civil aviation standard requires all international passengers whose destination is Beijing to undergo quarantine inspection and go through immigration at one of the 12 designated entry points in the other cities.

Only those passengers deemed to meet the boarding requirements after quarantine inspection can board their flights to their original destination of Beijing.

The 12 cities include Shanghai, Tianjin, Shijiazhuang of North China's Hebei Province, Taiyuan of North China's Shanxi Province, Zhengzhou of North China's Henan Province and Jinan and Qingdao in East China's Shandong Province.

An independent aviation market watcher who asks for anonymity told the Global Times on Sunday that the status of Beijing was "most important."

"That should be the primary consideration to ensure zero new confirmed cases of COVID19 in the capital city," he said.

CAAC had said that Beijing Capital International Airport has become the frontline against an overseas epidemic and imported cases. 

The move would relieve pressure on the country's capital city, which was the first choice for many passengers as many flights to other Chinese cities were suspended, Wang Yanan, chief editor of Aerospace Knowledge magazine, told the Global Times on Sunday. 

"Epidemic prevention and control in Beijing airports would be diverted to these 12 entry points and slash the possibility that these people become the source of infection," Wang said. 

The Capital International Airport has 205 international passenger flights a week, serving 33 countries and regions, according to CAAC.   

Beijing tops Chinese cities with the most confirmed cases from abroad: 97 confirmed imported cases from abroad, including 30 from the UK, 27 from Spain and 18 from Italy, Beijing Municipal Health Commission reported Sunday. 

The 12 cities have been implementing strict quarantine measures against possible imported cases on international flights, including a 14-day-quarantine at home or at designated places. Some of the 12, including Shanghai, are conducting nucleic acid tests on all passengers. 

Passengers at Pudong International Airport with COVID19 symptoms will be directly sent to medical institutes for diagnosis and treatment. Other passengers will also be sent to designated places for quarantine or have quarantine at home, the Shanghai municipal government said Sunday.

As the first batch of diverted flight, Flight CA926 from Tokyo, Japan landed in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia on Friday and eventually took only 19 passengers onto Beijing after 12 hours' quarantine inspection in Hohhot. 

The remaining 86 passengers were quarantined in Hohhot for medical observation, Chinese media yicai reported. 

A passenger is asked at least three times his or her origin and destination by airport staff members. The body temperature is taken twice and a free nucleic acid test is administered before they are permitted to leave customs, the report said.

Border quarantine rules apply to all nationalities: judicial officials

File photo: AFP

BEIJING, March 24 (Xinhua) -- Any Chinese or foreign citizen or stateless person who impairs frontier quarantine measures while entering or leaving China shall be equally held accountable in accordance with Chinese laws, officials with the Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate said Tuesday.

Chinese authorities have listed six kinds of behaviors that could constitute the crime of impairing frontier quarantine measures in a guideline, targeting individuals who spread or risk spreading a quarantinable infectious disease identified by the Chinese State Council, including plague, cholera, yellow fever and COVID-19.

People infected with quarantinable infectious diseases or suspected epidemic victims who refuse to receive isolated observation or fail to truthfully fill out their health declaration forms at border checkpoints, such as international airports, in China, could face criminal penalties, according to the guideline made public on March 16.

Outbreak control rules at customs apply to all nationalities, authorities say

Passengers wearing face masks stand on a moving walkway at Beijing Capital International Airport, on March 9, 2020. (Photo: Agencies)

People who disturb Chinese inspection and quarantine designed to control the novel coronavirus outbreak at customs will be held liable no matter where they are from, the country's judicial authorities said on Tuesday.

The Supreme People's Court and the Supreme People's Procuratorate highlighted the fight against crimes relating to border health and quarantine, noting offenses should follow Chinese laws and offenders may face criminal charges.

This is not about nationalities and also applies to stateless people, the national top court and top procuratorate added.

As it is witnessing a rising risk of imported infections of COVID-19, China has been tightening inspection and quarantine measures in international flights and ports in recent weeks.

On March 16, for example, five central authorities, including the top court and the top procuratorate, issued a guideline warning that travelers who deliberately hide their symptoms or fail to truthfully report their health condition when they come to China could face prison time.

When handling offenses among exit and entry, Chinese courts nationwide have also strengthened efforts in hearing civil disputes through online platforms to meet litigants' demands and protect their safety and health.

From when the epidemic began in January to March 18, courts at each level filed 2.12 million civil cases, of which 898,000 have been concluded, statistics released by the top court said on Tuesday.

It also disclosed 10 typical civil cases relating to business resumption, such as those on enterprise shutdowns and delay of financial loans due to the epidemic, to show judicial determination to help companies alleviate disputes during the outbreak.

Courts across the country will continue offering strong legal protection and better legal services to support resumption of enterprises, the top court added.

Int'l travelers asked to 'think twice' about choosing Beijing for flight transfer

Customs officers work at an epidemic investigation area at the Capital International Airport in Beijing, capital of China, March 18, 2020. (Photo: Xinhua)

BEIJING, March 23 (Xinhua) -- International travelers were advised Monday to "think twice" about choosing Beijing Capital International Airport for transferring to flights to other countries, as China is stepping up efforts to curb the mounting risk posed by imported COVID-19 cases.

Under China's new regulation, starting from Monday, all international flights scheduled to arrive in Beijing will be redirected to airports in 12 other Chinese cities, including Tianjin and Hohhot, said Liu Haitao, an official with the National Immigration Administration, at a press conference.

Passengers would go through entry procedures and quarantine measures at the designated cities' airports before they continue their flights to Beijing, Liu said, urging travelers to reserve enough time for their next flights to make sure that they do not miss their outbound flights.

Due to the epidemic situation abroad, inbound foreigners should report information including invitation and reception units and contact person in China, address of passage places and destinations, as well as personal contact information, Liu said.

Foreign travelers who fail to meet entry requirements, or do not answer inquires and report information according to facts, are not allowed to enter into China, Liu said.

Source:Xinhua; CGTN; China Daily; By Xin Wen |  chinadaily.com.cn;Global Times

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