PCR tests for everyone not necessary in 'safe' districts: State Council

There is no need to carry out nucleic acid testing for everyone in a district where the source of a COVID-19 outbreak and the chain of transmission are both clear and no community transmission is detected as judged by epidemiological survey, according to the State Council.

People in risk areas or having time and space overlap with the positive cases should undergo screenings.

Nucleic acid testing for all is necessary in those districts with an unclear chain of transmission, with quite a few risk areas and risk groups of people, or where people are in frequently mobility so that the outbreak tends to further spread, said Wang Liping, a researcher at the infectious disease prevention and control department of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, at a press conference organized by the Joint Prevention and Control Mechanism of the State Council on Thursday.

Different PCR testing strategies within a district in a provincial capital, a city with a population of at least 10 million, or a regular city or village are made clear in the country's ninth edition of the National Health Commission's guideline for COVID-19 Diagnosis and Treatment.