Health

Unlike other children his age, Kai (not his real name) spent little time playing with other children. Sometimes he would inform his mother that he had no pals at school. “I have been referred to as ‘fatty’ and ‘chubby’ by peers. It made me feel different from them, therefore I rarely interacted with or played with them,” he explained. Kai …

According to a leading Chinese epidemiologist, the peak of China’s COVID-19 wave is predicted to last two to three months and will rapidly spread over the vast countryside, where medical services are rather few. Hundreds of millions are anticipated to return to their hometowns for the Lunar New Year celebrations, which formally begin on January 21. Prior to the epidemic, …

Pfizer Inc is not in discussions with Chinese authorities to license a generic version of its COVID-19 treatment Paxlovid for use in China, according to the company’s chief executive, Albert Bourla, on Monday, January 9. However, the company is in discussions about the price of the branded product, he said. Reuters reported on Friday that China was in negotiations with …

The Chinese embassy in South Korea has banned the issuance of short-term visas to South Korean tourists, the embassy said on Tuesday, January 10. This is the first act of retaliation against states that have imposed COVID-19 restrictions on Chinese passengers. The embassy would modify its stance if South Korea removes “discriminatory entrance restrictions” against China, according to a statement …

Thailand has revoked a weekend-announced entrance regulation requiring visitors to present confirmation of a COVID-19 vaccine, its health minister stated on Monday, January 9, citing adequate immunization rates in China and worldwide. Anutin Charnvirakul and a panel of health specialists have decided to reverse the new regulation, which was published on Saturday, January 7 by aviation authorities in anticipation of …

A day after meeting with Chinese Ambassador to the Philippines Ambassador Huang Xillian, Aklan officials and local government and business leaders in the country’s most popular tourist destination stated they anticipate the return of Chinese tourists on January 9. “We discussed the prospect of Chinese tourists returning in the near future. We are pleased with his arrival,” Malay Mayor Floribar …

Thailand is preparing for more visitors after China reopened its border on Sunday by requiring international passengers to show proof they are completely immunized against COVID before traveling to Thailand. According to a statement released on Saturday by the Civil Aviation Authority of Thailand (CAAT), beginning early on Monday, all international arrivals would need to show proof of vaccination or …

China is in negotiations with Pfizer Inc. to get a license that will allow domestic drugmakers to produce and market a generic version of the COVID-19 antiviral medicine Paxlovid in China, according to three sources cited by Reuters. Since late last month, China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has been in charge of negotiations with Pfizer, according to one source …

Now that the border between Hong Kong and China has been reopened, Shanghai engineer Roy Wang has a pressing task: rekindling his long-distance love after a terrible separation. “So many arguments occurred between my girlfriend and I. It was quite difficult to manage,” Wang, 23, reported to AFP on Wednesday (Jan 4). His request to visit her the following day …

China may be reopening, with its millions of would-be tourists and other global travelers freed of nearly all Covid-19 restrictions, but many of the countries that had been waiting desperately for the return of all those lovely tourist dollars are now keeping a wary foot behind the door, if not slamming it shut. China has announced that it would eliminate …