What’s new: An infectious disease expert has confirmed that not all deaths of Covid patients will count as Covid deaths in China.
Deceased Covid patients who also suffered from underlying conditions such as cardiovascular disease will not be included in the Covid death tally if it turns out that their condition was the primary cause of death, said Wang Guiqiang, director of the infectious disease department at Peking University First Hospital.
A patient will only be counted as a Covid death if their primary cause of death is pneumonia or respiratory failure caused by the virus, Wang said during a Tuesday press conference held by the country’s top epidemic control body.
The primary cause of death will be determined through consultation and discussion at medical institutions, Wang added.
He also said that the National Health Commission had issued a notice to clarify how Covid deaths should be classified. Caixin reported on the issue on Monday.
One death case was removed from the official fatality tally on Wednesday, according to the commission’s daily Covid report. The reason for the removal was not specified.
The background: China’s Covid death classification and reporting mechanism is based on an internal document dated Dec. 6 that was issued by the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council.
According to the new standards, patients who tested Covid-19 positive and died while in hospital would be categorized into Covid deaths and non-Covid deaths, based on whether the virus was diagnosed as the primary cause of death.
Contact reporter Kelly Wang (jingzhewang@caixin.com) and editor Michael Bellart (michaelbellart@caixin.com)
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