China's tactics for preventing COVID-19 case import and domestic resurgence of COVID-19 remain effective for the Omicron variant of the virus, medical experts said on Monday.
The Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention has established a special nucleic acid testing method targeting the new variant and continues to monitor the genome sequence of potential imported infections, they told a press conference held by the National Health Commission on Monday.
Faced with the new variant, experts also called on members of the public, including those who are fully vaccinated, to wear face masks in public venues and during transit, implement self-monitoring of their health, and reduce non-essential inbound and outbound travel.
A special session of the World Health Assembly (WHA) kicked off on Monday amid growing concerns over the latest Omicron coronavirus variant, where the participants aim to negotiate a new "pandemic treaty."
The WHA May session this year decided to set up a working group to consider the findings and recommendations of a number of panels and committees on global preparedness for and response to COVID-19 before starting their discussions on Monday on the potential new "legally binding agreement between nations."
"COVID-19 has exposed and exacerbated fundamental weaknesses in the global architecture for pandemic preparedness and response," said World Health Organization (WHO) Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the opening of the special session.
"The best way we can address them is with a legally binding agreement between nations, an accord forged from the recognition that we have no future but a common future," he said.
According to Tedros, the new "pandemic treaty" is expected to address COVID-19 as "a crisis of solidarity and sharing."
The WHA special session coincides with the emergence of the highly mutated Omicron virus variant, which was designated by the WHO as a "variant of concern" (VOC) just three days ago.
Though the WHO has said it is not yet clear whether Omicron is more transmissible or causes more severe disease than the other known variants, including Delta, concerns over its impact on the efficacy of existing vaccines and treatments have been growing.
China's existing COVID-19 containment strategy, characterized by resolute and prompt response to cut its transmission and tackle new outbreaks, should be sufficient for tackling the new Omicron variant of the novel coronavirus, health experts and officials said recently.
They added that the country's dynamic zero-case policy should continue to be enforced this winter and spring, as new modeling shows that dropping it prematurely would risk causing "a colossal outbreak".
