WHO says China COVID-19 travel restrictions are reasonable

The head of the World Health Organization (WHO), Tedros Ghebreyesus says he understands why some countries including Canada reintroduced travel restrictions amid surging COVID-19 cases in China.

Ottawa’s new temporary measure takes effect on Thursday. It will require all travellers coming from China to show a negative COVID test upon entering Canada. Earlier this week the move was slammed by doctors in Canada but Wednesday, the WHO says there isn’t enough reliable COVID-19 data from China and data remains essential when assessing the global picture.

READ MORE: Travellers entering Canada from China must show negative COVID-19 test

Starting Thursday and for the next 30 days in Canada all air travellers aged two and up arriving from China, Hong Kong or Macao will need a COVID-free test taken no more than two days prior to flying. Other countries are taking similar action and the WHO says the measure is reasonable.

“With circulation in China so high and comprehensive data not forthcoming, as I said last week, it’s understandable that some countries are taking steps they believe will protect their own citizens,” Ghebreyesus said.

WHO officials say the United Nations health agency is “concerned about the risk to life in China.” One reason given was the lack of COVID-19 data on hospitalizations, deaths and spread. “We continue to ask China for more rapid, regular and reliable data,” Ghebreyesus said.

While boasting some of the harshest COVID-19 rules in the past three years officials from China criticized the imposed testing and threatened countermeasures against the countries involved.

On the local front, many medical experts called the travel move unnecessary and political. Among them was McMaster University’s director of infectious diseases Dr Dominik Mertz who says a variant in the U.S. is more concerning. He adds there are better ways to gauge viral spread among travellers.

“As a doctor, we’re not doing politics but maybe it’s a way to pressure China to release more data if they have more data,” Dr Mertz said.

Dr Mertz adds, “I think the next step is testing wastewater, that should be done globally and not just in Canada, and we’d inform WHO of what might be happening in that country,”

Ottawa says this month it is running pilot projects at the Vancouver airport testing wastewater for COVID-19 variants and it is expanding to Toronto’s Pearson airport as well.