New virus cases fall; Xi urged steps as early as Jan. 7

BEIJING — China reported early today a drop in new virus cases for the third straight day, as it became apparent that the country’s leadership was aware of the potential gravity of the situation well before the alarm was sounded.

After Chinese President Xi Jinping played a muted public role in the early days of the epidemic, state media published Saturday evening a speech Xi delivered Feb. 3 in which he said he gave instructions on fighting the virus as early as Jan. 7.

The disclosure indicates top leaders knew about the outbreak’s potential severity weeks before such dangers were made known to the public. It was not until late January that officials said the virus can spread between humans and public alarm began to rise.

There are 2,009 new cases in mainland China, bringing its total number of confirmed cases to 68,500, according to the country’s National Health Commission.

The fatality rate remained stable with 142 new deaths, the commission said. The death toll in mainland China from COVID-19, a disease stemming from a new form of coronavirus, now stands at 1,665. In all, 9,419 people have recovered and been discharged from hospital.

China’s fall in new cases follows a spike of more than 15,000 on Thursday, when the central province of Hubei adopted a new diagnostic method that includes clinical diagnoses in its official account. Overwhelmed by suspected cases, the province has not able to test every person exhibiting symptoms. The clinical diagnosis is based on doctors’ analysis and lung imaging and is intended to allow probable cases to be treated as confirmed ones without the need to wait for a lab result.

The outbreak began in December in Wuhan, capital of Hubei, which has the bulk of infections.

It has since spread to more than 24 countries and prompted sweeping prevention measures from the Chinese government, including a lockdown of cities with a combined population of more than 60 million.