While the Chinese Communist Party portrayed itself as having come out of the novel coronavirus outbreak, National Public Radio (NPR) reported that some Wuhan residents who had tested positive earlier and then recovered from the coronavirus are testing positive for the virus a second time. Based on data from several quarantine facilities in Wuhan, about 5 to 10 percent of patients pronounced “recovered” have tested positive again.
Some of those who retested positive appear to be asymptomatic carriers — those who carry the virus and are possibly infectious but do not exhibit any of the illness’s associated symptoms. NPR warned that the outbreak in Wuhan is not close to being over.
However, these second-time positive patients are not included in China’s infection count.
Hubei Daily reported on March 23, that Tu Yuan, Deputy Director of the Hubei Provincial Health Commission, told news reporters that, since these patients had been reported when they were confirmed the first time, they would not be reported again as new confirmed cases, to avoid duplicate counting.
Related postings on Chinascope:
- Infection Count: Hubei Was Unlocked, But Beijing Does not Want Anyone from Hubei to Come
- Infection Count: 60 Percent Hidden Infection Cases in Wuhan Are Not Reported
- Infection Count: Cured Patients Tested COVID-19 Positive Again
- Infection Count: Zhang Wenhong Worried about Shanghai’s Confirmed Infection Count Being Zero
- Infection Count: Shandong Internal Report Had Much Higher Infection Counts Than the Published Numbers