Prognosis

China Says Covid Deaths Top 12,600 and More Than 1 Billion Infected

  • Real death toll likely much higher given scale of the outbreak
  • WHO has urged China to release more detailed Covid information
China Covid Deaths Top 12,600 Week Before Lunar New Year
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

China said its Covid-related death toll topped more than 12,600 in the week before the Lunar New Year holiday, while a top health official suggested more than 1.1 billion people had been infected since virus controls were abruptly dismantled late last year.

There were 12,658 Covid-linked deaths at hospitals between Jan. 13-19, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said in a statement dated Saturday. A week earlier, the country reported 59,938 such deaths for the period Dec. 8-Jan. 12.