China's experiences with COVID-19 paying off as it tackles Omicron

Guo Yanhong, an official with the National Health Commission's medical supervision and administration bureau, said at a news conference on Thursday that the experience China has gained treating COVID-19 variants over the past two years has proved effective in handling infections caused by Omicron.

For example, experience has taught experts that immediately treating patients with mild symptoms can help prevent their conditions from worsening, Guo said.

In addition, medical workers should focus on curing underlying diseases while treating a patient infected with the novel coronavirus, and local governments should ensure severe cases are treated at designated hospitals where more resources are concentrated, she said.

Wu Liangyou, deputy director of the commission's disease prevention and control bureau, said at the news conference that since April, the Chinese mainland has reported 553,251 local infections. The number of infections in Shanghai and Jilin province account for more than 95 percent of that total.

However, the epidemic situation in both places is improving, he added.