Covid-19: What can China learn from Hong Kong and Singapore about exiting zero covid

China’s “zero covid” strategy was successful in protecting the Chinese population throughout the first phase of the covid-19 pandemic. However, following widespread recent protests in Beijing, Shanghai, and elsewhere, ostensibly triggered by a fatal fire in Urumqi and aggravated by pictures of maskless fans at the football World Cup, the Chinese government announced that most of its covid restrictions would be relaxed. As Mainland China retreats from its zero covid policies what lessons can China take from the management of covid-19 in Hong Kong and Singapore?There is good evidence that before the availability of vaccines, elimination was the most effective pandemic strategy.1 In Hong Kong, this strategy, based upon test, trace, and isolate, meant that by the time vaccines were rolled out, the city of 7.4 million people had a cumulative population covid-19 mortality of 26 per million.2 At that time, a Hong Kong resident was 68 times less likely…
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