The White House is keeping a close watch on the increase in respiratory illnesses in China, but there is no evidence linking the outbreak in Beijing and surrounding regions to people seeking care in U.S. emergency departments.
According to a Biden administration official, the U.S. and other countries are experiencing typical seasonal trends in respiratory illnesses and nothing appears to be out of the ordinary.
Hospitals in northern China have reported a surge in respiratory patients, particularly children, prompting concerns among some U.S. lawmakers. This comes after the Chinese government suppressed early signs of COVID-19 in late 2019.
A group of Senate Republicans recently called on President Biden to halt travel with China until more information is obtained.
However, the administration and medical experts are working to ease these concerns. They have pointed to similar outbreaks of respiratory viruses in Europe, including known seasonal pathogens such as respiratory syncytial virus and Mycoplasma pneumoniae, which often affects children.
Scientists suggest that parts of the Northern Hemisphere might be experiencing a surge in illnesses because children, especially in China, did not develop immunity to certain pathogens while society was under full or partial lockdown during the COVID-19 era.
The Biden administration has stated that it is in communication with global health authorities and Chinese counterparts through the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Some GOP lawmakers argue that the U.S. cannot afford to simply accept China’s narrative, or the interpretation of events provided by the World Health Organization.
“As you know, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) has a long history of deceiving the public about health crises,” said Sens. Marco Rubio, J.D. Vance, Rick Scott, Tommy Tuberville, and Mike Braun in a letter urging a suspension of travel.
At the same time, health officials in parts of the U.S. have stated that there is no indication that the increase in local illnesses is linked to China.
Officials in Warren County, Ohio, have reported an unusually high number of pneumonia cases in children ages 3 to 14 this year. However, there have been no fatalities, and most cases recover at home with antibiotics.
“The Warren County Health District wants to emphasize that the increase in reported pneumonia cases is not suspected to be a new or novel respiratory virus but rather a significant rise in the number of typical pediatric pneumonia cases,” the department stated. “There is no evidence to suggest that this outbreak is connected to other outbreaks, either statewide, nationally, or internationally.”
