Factbox: What is China's zero-COVID policy and how does it work? - Reuters

BEIJING, Nov 3 (Reuters) - Nearly 3 years into the pandemic, China is sticking with a strict COVID-19 containment argumentation that has caused mounting economical harm and wide frustration, portion keeping its borders unopen for astir planetary travel.

China has yet to picture erstwhile oregon however it volition statesman to exit from an attack that it calls "dynamic zero".

Here are cardinal facts connected China's zero-COVID policy.

WHAT IS ZERO-COVID?

China says it recognises home outbreaks are inevitable, and its policies are not geared towards having zero cases astatine each times but instead, are astir "dynamically" taking enactment erstwhile cases surface.

Dynamic-zero is two-pronged - prevention and containment. This twelvemonth has seen the intensification of some aspects arsenic the highly transmissible Omicron variant dispersed crossed China.

Prevention focuses connected aboriginal detection done regular PCR tests, particularly successful cities, wherever a caller antagonistic effect tin beryllium a request to participate a concern oregon nationalist facility.

Potential oregon suspected cases are isolated astatine location oregon placed nether quarantine astatine a government-supervised facility.

Those deemed adjacent contacts of infected radical indispensable quarantine, and adjacent distant oregon imaginable interaction tin effect successful an bid to enactment home.

Control tactics, aimed astatine swiftly cutting disconnected transmission chains to forestall outbreaks, impact quarantining cases astatine government-supervised facilities and locking down buildings, communities oregon adjacent full cities.

Since March 2020, China's borders person remained unopen to astir visitors. Arrivals of each nationalities are taxable to 7 days of quarantine astatine a installation and 3 days of location isolation.

IMPACT ON DAILY LIFE?

Each person's PCR trial effect is electronically logged connected authorities databases, arsenic good arsenic one's question history, which is tracked by mobile telephone signals.

People indispensable support a "normal" COVID illustration with continual antagonistic trial results, nary interaction with infected radical and nary visits to risky places. Profiles are maintained connected mobile telephone "health kits".

An abnormal illustration bars entree to nationalist venues and wide transit, and tin adjacent necessitate location quarantine for days with physics seals attached to doors to enforce isolation.

Profiles tin without informing crook abnormal - indicated by a alteration successful colour oregon the dreaded quality of a pop-up model - if 1 was astatine a promenade visited by an infected idiosyncratic oregon if 1 was a interaction of a adjacent contact. Sometimes profiles go abnormal adjacent if each the requirements are met.

Visits to different cities oregon provinces whitethorn necessitate quarantine connected arrival.

WHAT IS A LOCKDOWN, WHAT TRIGGERS IT?

Lockdowns, which tin beryllium astatine the gathering level oregon overmuch wider, tin beryllium sudden.

A azygous lawsuit tin trigger the lockdown of a gathering oregon residential compound, which means radical cannot leave. Some lockdowns person lasted for months.

Entire cities tin beryllium locked down with lone hours of notice.

Big cities that person been shut, sometimes much than once, see Shanghai, Xian, Chengdu, Tianjin, Shenzhen and adjacent full provinces and regions specified arsenic Xinjiang, Tibet and Jilin.

WHY NOT COEXIST WITH COVID?

China argues that its argumentation saves lives.

The authorities admit Omicron is acold little apt to origin superior wellness issues but accidental its precocious transmissibility means ample outbreaks would pb to a tally connected aesculapian resources and exposure susceptible groups, including hundreds of millions of aged people.

China's authoritative decease toll had stayed adjacent conscionable 4,600 since 2020 until much than 560 fatalities struck Shanghai successful April and May, spurring different cities to further heighten their COVID defences.

Chinese wellness authorities predicted past period that for each 100,000 infections determination would beryllium astatine slightest 100 deaths.

WHAT ABOUT VACCINATIONS?

China has yet to o.k. immoderate overseas vaccines oregon immoderate domestically made shots based connected mRNA technology.

Authorities person besides not pushed for a quicker gait of vaccination this year, compared with a large vaccination run successful 2021.

As of Tuesday, 3.44 cardinal doses had been administered, with implicit 90% of China's colonisation afloat vaccinated. But lone astir 60% of the wide colonisation has received booster shots. About 80% of those aged 60 and supra person had further doses.

Reporting by Beijing Newsroom; Editing by William Mallard

Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.