China may opt for lockdowns “when necessary” to fight flu outbreaks

A rise in flu cases has led to antiviral medicine shortages across China.

Officials in the Chinese metropolis of Xi’an have sparked a backlash by stating they may opt for lockdowns “when required” to fight future flu outbreaks.

China to impose lockdowns to stop flu outbreaks: 

Xi’an will lock down places and shut schools if a spell poses an “extreme threat”, according to an emergency reply plan published on Wednesday.

Many internet handles have called the plan “excessive”, mainly after criticism of China’s Covid controls.

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Flu cases have increased across China as its latest Covid wave is weakening. The rise in flu cases has also led to a nationwide shortage of pharmacy antiviral medicine.

While there is no whiff of an imminent lockdown in Xi’an, some have voiced fears that its plan could see a return to the zero-Covid system, which the nation abruptly dumped in December.

Renowned for the terracotta army, Xi’an experienced some of the nation’s strictest lockdowns during the covid. Locals were barred from leaving their houses to purchase food and other necessary supplies for a month in December 2021.

One person wrote on the Chinese social media platform Weibo that influenza spells had been expected before Covid, but “life went on as per usual” when they hit.

Source – BBC