Beds run out at Beijing hospital as COVID-19 spreads
Beds run out at Beijing hospital as COVID-19 spreads
An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Elderly patients rest along a corridor of the emergency ward as they receive intravenous drips in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Elderly patients rest along a corridor of the emergency ward as they receive intravenous drips in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman looks after her elderly relative lying on a stretcher as patients receive intravenous drips in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman looks after her elderly relative lying on a stretcher as patients receive intravenous drips in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man pushes his relative in pain on a wheelchair as patients receive intravenous drips in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man pushes his relative in pain on a wheelchair as patients receive intravenous drips in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker talks to a woman as elderly patients receive intravenous drips along a corridor in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker talks to a woman as elderly patients receive intravenous drips along a corridor in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
People wearing face masks browse their phones as they look after their elderly relatives rest along a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
People wearing face masks browse their phones as they look after their elderly relatives rest along a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, A medical worker helps a patient on the intravenous drip at a community healthcare institution in Shanghai, China, Monday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (Fang Zhe/Xinhua via AP)
In this photo released by Xinhua News Agency, A medical worker helps a patient on the intravenous drip at a community healthcare institution in Shanghai, China, Monday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (Fang Zhe/Xinhua via AP)
A woman attends to her elderly relative at a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman attends to her elderly relative at a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker checks on an elderly woman on a stretcher at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker checks on an elderly woman on a stretcher at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient receives an intravenous drip while using a ventilator in the hallway of the emergency ward at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient rests near a medicine collection counter as people wait in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient rests near a medicine collection counter as people wait in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Patients receive intravenous drips at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Patients receive intravenous drips at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient wearing a face mask looks as patients wait to see a doctor at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
An elderly patient wearing a face mask looks as patients wait to see a doctor at the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man listens to his phone as he attends to his elderly relative at a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man listens to his phone as he attends to his elderly relative at a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man talks to a medical worker as elderly patients rest along a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A man talks to a medical worker as elderly patients rest along a corridor of the emergency ward to receive intravenous drips at a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker talks to a woman as elderly patients receive intravenous drips along a corridor in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A medical worker talks to a woman as elderly patients receive intravenous drips along a corridor in the emergency ward of a hospital in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Patients, most of them elderly, are lying on stretchers in hallways and taking oxygen while sitting in wheelchairs as COVID-19 surges in China’s capital Beijing. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Visitors wearing face masks tour past an outdoor shopping center displaying a Mickey Mouse statue commemorating the Disney 100th anniversary in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
Visitors wearing face masks tour past an outdoor shopping center displaying a Mickey Mouse statue commemorating the Disney 100th anniversary in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman takes a selfie as visitors wearing face masks tour past an outdoor shopping center displaying a Mickey Mouse statue commemorating the Disney 100th anniversary, in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman takes a selfie as visitors wearing face masks tour past an outdoor shopping center displaying a Mickey Mouse statue commemorating the Disney 100th anniversary, in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A police robot vehicle patrols past masked visitors at an outdoor shopping center in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A police robot vehicle patrols past masked visitors at an outdoor shopping center in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman and a child wearing face masks walk by a Mickey Mouse statue on display at an outdoor shopping center commemorating Disney 100th anniversary, in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
A woman and a child wearing face masks walk by a Mickey Mouse statue on display at an outdoor shopping center commemorating Disney 100th anniversary, in Beijing, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. As COVID-19 rips through China, other countries and the WHO are calling on its government to share more comprehensive data on the outbreak, with some even saying many of the numbers it is reporting are meaningless. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
BEIJING (AP) — Mostly older men and women wearing masks rested on cots in hallways, while others slept upright in crowded waiting rooms with numbered chairs. Many received fluids intravenously, while others were given oxygen. The sound of people coughing — and of new patients arriving on gurneys — was steady.
At the Chuiyangliu hospital in the east of Beijing on Thursday, signs of the COVID-19 outbreak stretching public health facilities in the world’s most populous nation were on full display.
Beds ran out by midmorning at the packed hospital, even as ambulances brought more people in. Hard-pressed nurses and doctors rushed to take information and triage the most urgent cases.
The crush of people seeking hospital care follows China’s abandonment of its most severe pandemic restrictions last month after nearly three years of lockdowns, travels bans and school closures that weighed heavily on the economy and prompted unusual street protests in a country that quashes political dissent.
The outbreak appears to have spread the fastest in densely populated cities first. Now, authorities are concerned as it reaches smaller towns and rural areas with weaker health care systems. Several local governments began asking people Thursday not to make the trip home for the upcoming Lunar New Year holiday, signaling lingering worry around opening up.
Overseas, a growing number of governments are requiring virus tests for travelers from China, saying they are needed because the Chinese government is not sharing enough information on the outbreak. The European Union on Wednesday “strongly encouraged” its member states to impose pre-departure COVID-19 testing, though not all have done so.
Italy — the first place in Europe where the pandemic exacted a heavy toll in early 2020 — became the first EU member to require tests for passengers from China last week, and France and Spain followed with their own measures. The U.S. is requiring a negative test result for travelers from China within 48 hours of departure.
China has criticized the requirements and warned of countermeasures against countries imposing them.
World Health Organization head Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Wednesday he was concerned about the lack of outbreak data from the Chinese government.
At a daily briefing Thursday, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning said Beijing has consistently “shared information and data with the international community in an open and transparent manner.”
“At present, China’s COVID-19 situation is under control,” Mao said.
On Sunday, many remaining restrictions — some already not being enforced — will be lifted.
“We recommend that everyone not return to their hometowns unless necessary during the peak of the outbreak,” the government of Shaoyang county in Hunan province in central China said in a notice dated Thursday. “Avoid visiting relatives and traveling between regions. Minimize travel.”
Similar appeals were issued by Shouxian county in Anhui province southeast of Beijing and the cities of Qingyang in Gansu province in the northwest and Weifang in Shandong on the east coast.
The appeals, which harkened back to the last few years of strict pandemic restrictions, showed that some officials remain nervous about lifting them too quickly.
The Weifang government notice said residents should celebrate the holiday with video and phone gatherings.
“Avoid visiting relatives and friends to protect yourself and others,” it said.
Despite such concerns, Hong Kong announced it will reopen some of its border crossings with mainland China on Sunday and allow tens of thousands of people to cross every day without being quarantined.
The city’s land and sea border checkpoints with the mainland have been largely closed for almost three years and the reopening is expected to provide a much-needed boost to Hong Kong’s tourism and retail sectors.
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Associated Press reporters Joe McDonald in Beijing and Kanis Leung in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
