Is China prematurely discharging potentially-infected patients just to inflate the number of ‘recovered’

A total of 22,888 patients infected with the novel coronavirus had been discharged from hospital after recovery by the end of Saturday, the Chinese health authority said on Sunday. Saturday saw 2,230 people walk out of hospital after recovery, the National Health Commission said in its daily report. By the end of Saturday, a total of 2,442 people had died of the disease and 76,936 confirmed cases of novel coronavirus infection had been reported in 31 provincial-level regions and the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps on the Chinese mainland. –The Jakarta Post

If you’ve noticed the recent jump in the number of patients China says has recovered from the COVID-19 infection and you’re scratching your head; you’re not alone. China is discharging thousands of patients to inflate the number of recoveries and clear hospital beds, despite the fact that some patients who have been discharged, say they are not entirely symptom free. The Chinese Communist Party’s awkward hand at fuzzy math may be setting the stage for a secondary wave of new COVID-19 coronavirus infections.

Infected patient re-admitted a 2^nd time:  A coronavirus patient initially discharged after recovering in southwestern Sichuan province’s Chengdu city has been readmitted after testing positive during a quarantine period at home, the city’s public health clinical center said on Friday. The patient tested positive during a check-up 10 days after being discharged, the center said in a statement. Similar cases have been reported in other regions. The positive result after discharge was likely due to a discrepancy in samples, the state media People’s Daily reported late Friday, citing an expert.

Official guidelines say patients must test negative for the virus twice, with at least a day between tests, before being discharged. Hospitals had used nose and throat swabs for such tests before discharging patients, but are now required to use samples from lungs, where the virus is most likely to be detected as it develops, Lei Xuezhong, a doctor working on a treatment for coronavirus-caused pneumonia in Sichuan province told People’s Daily. China’s National Health Commission recommends recovered patients monitor their health for 14 days, wear masks and reduce outdoor activities after leaving hospitals due to risks of contracting other pathogens.  –Reuters