China’s system of measures to contain the spread of and fight against the coronavirus epidemic

China was the first to take the blow of the coronavirus (COVID-19) epidemic, and was affected the most amongst other nations.

China’s experience in prompt containment of the epidemic (the number of new cases in China has fallen sharply in 2 months), as well as in overcoming its economic consequences, is of much interest.

Owing to the measures taken by the authorities, it became possible to almost completely stop the spread of the epidemic. From March 13 to March 17, 2020, the number of «imported» cases exceeded the number of internal infections (on March 17, 2020, 12 out of 13 newly diagnosed cases came from abroad China).

1. Timeline

·        January 20, 2020 — human-to-human transmission of the virus was officially confirmed.

·        January 21, 2020 — «closure» of Wuhan. Treatment of patients with an acute form of the disease: specialized hospitals have been built for centralized treatment (for example, Hoshenshan).

·        January 24, 2020 — Medical assistance: the first group of doctors arrived in Hubei on the eve of the Chinese New Year, 42,000 people by February 29, 2020.

·        January 27, 2020 — Treatment for all infected and people suspected of having the virus free of charge.

·        February 3, 2020 — Quarantined patients: building mobile hospitals for patients with a mild form of the disease.

·        February 8, 2020 — «Attention to every family, every person»: the goal is to quarantine all patients.

·        February 15, 2020 — Resumption of work: government calls to bring production back to normal.

·        February 26, 2020 — The number of newly identified cases outside of China exceeded the number of newly confirmed cases in China.

·        March 7, 2020 — Signs of successful containment: no newly confirmed cases outside the Hubei province of China.

2. Measures taken by the government

        2.1. Prompt containment of the epidemic

        2.1.1. Closure of the epicenter to contain the spread of the epidemic

·        3 days after confirmed transmission of the virus from a human to a human, Wuhan and 15 other cities of the Hubei province were quarantined, highways were closed and public transport was shut down.

·        10 days after closure, the daily number of infections outside the Hubei province began to fall.

        2.1.2. Provision of medical and life-support services through a three-level approach to treatment

·        Starting from January 24, 2020 (the eve of the Chinese New Year), 42,000 people of medical staff from all over China came to Wuhan, none of them got infected.

·        For extreme cases: 2 new 2,600-bed hospitals built in Wuhan in 10 days.

·        For mild cases: mobile hospitals built to increase the number of beds

         —       The first 3 hospitals built in 36 hours to provide 4,000 beds;

         —       Total of 14 mobile hospitals built in Wuhan, covering ¼ of patients, 0 deaths, 0 personnel infections.

·        Home visits for testing ALL residents and screening for potential cases.

·        All diagnostics and treatment free of charge.

·        Nine other provinces of China sent health workers to Hubei to ensure uninterrupted care for those in need.

        2.2. Utilizing digital technologies — creating conditions for the continuation of life and work using digital technology

·        Medical care, utilities, food supply — all these services had to work at full capacity, price control was ensured.

·        Boom of digital services:

         —       Medical consultations: HaoDaiFu served 1.68 million people in 17 days, daily registration grew by 350%;

         —       Food delivery: JD retailer’s fresh food delivery volumes increased by 226%;

         —       Education: the 6 most popular apps have been downloaded 45 million times.

        2.3. Economics

        2.3.1. Flexible production and work

·        A manufacturer of military uniforms has transformed its production line to produce protective clothing for medical workers in 11 days. With the production of 50,000 sets per day, the factory met a third of the country’s daily needs.

·        A chemical company has built a new factory for the production of meltblown fabrics (for the manufacture of masks) in 15 days.

·        Automobile, batteries and electrical appliances manufacturers have started to produce medical masks, the daily production of masks increased from 20 million to 110 million per day.

·        Employee exchange program between online and «physical» employers — delivery services temporarily hired 75,000 people, 37,6% of which were employees of restaurants, gyms, etc.

        2.3.2. Mitigating economic consequences

·        In the second half of January, the government launched new economic policy measures, including tax exemptions and lower rental rates, aimed to reduce the burden on companies, estimated at more than USD 15 billion.

·        The Central Bank has established special reduced rate re-lending funds worth USD 45 billion for lending support.

·        Precise standards for the organization of jobs after the resumption of companies: masks, disinfection, temperature measurement, the distance between employees is 1-1.5 meters, etc.

·        Interregional permits for freight transport issued.

·        Charter flights / trains to return migrant workers launched by local officials.

3. Using big data

·        Hangzhou was one of the first cities to apply big data and information technology to prevent and control the spread of the disease within the framework of the approach of «one map, one QR code, one index».

·        QR codes were issued to everyone in the city and to all visitors to the city. The green code allowed free movement, yellow demanded 7-day self-isolation, red — 14-day self-isolation.

Two weeks after the quarantine regime was introduced, some companies and organizations were allowed to return to work.

·        Organizations re-opened stage by stage, based on prioritization. For example, healthcare organizations were allowed to open first.

·        Each resident was obliged to monitor and record his temperature and update his profile daily to confirm their status level.

·        The database was carefully monitored by the Hangzhou City Disease Control and Prevention Center. These measures have proved their efficiency, since there was no repeated outbreak of the disease in Hangzhou.

4. Key measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19

• Providing clear guidance on the level and scale of the quarantine regime.
• Monitoring the quarantine regime enforcement down to individual citizens, households, community organizations, community services, and city government.
• Monitoring the supply of food and essentials.
• Allocating medical facilities to isolate and monitor the infected.
• Organizing an electronic system for recording and tracking the cases of infection 24/7.
• Launching centralized channels for informing citizens.