OK, We’re Back to a Simple "Everyone Quarantines"

原创 Michael Wester theBeijinger

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Beijing’s brief flirtation with exempting foreign arrivals from quarantining (which we felt never made sense to begin with) is over, after 19 days.

In their daily press briefing today, Beijing clarified that ALL people flying in from overseas will be required to do a 14-day quarantine at home or in a government-designated facility, CGTN reports (news.cgtn.com). They now join all people returning from domestic destinations within China in being required to conduct a two-week quarantine.

The city first made exemptions at a time when the COVID-19 outbreak had not made much headway overseas. Then, a little over a week ago, they backtracked a bit to say that yes, those that came from “severely affected countries” (namely South Korea, Japan, Iran, and Italy) would be subject to quarantine.

Now here we are, eight days later, and countries such as France, Spain, and the US are seeing significant outbreaks (and dozens of countries catching up fast). In response, Beijing has decided aw heck it’s just much easier if we do a blanket quarantine for all arrivals from overseas.

In addition, the city also announced a policy for business travelers who plan on staying less than 14 days: they will be subjected to coronavirus testing upon arrival and will be asked to remain in their hotel until passing the test as negative. No details were given on how such a test would be administered or how long it would take to get results.

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In most cases, expatriate residents returning to Beijing will be sent home to do a self-quarantine administered by their local property management company or neighborhood committee. Enforcement across Beijing has been differing, with some areas requiring residents to remain in their apartment, while others allowing residents to make essential trips such as grocery runs.

Those exhibiting symptoms will be sent for testing and possible admission to the hospital. Those without a permanent address in Beijing or unlucky enough to be seated next to someone who tests positive will be required to do their quarantine in a government-designated facility, usually a hotel.

There are still some remaining exemptions to the quarantine rules, such as government officials, pregnant women, and workers living in factory dorms, but they probably don’t apply to you, so if you’re reading this now, just ask yourself the following question: Am I a human being? If the answer is yes, you will be asked to do a quarantine.