China’s Pneumonia Spike Sparks Concerns in Japan

China is wrestling with a spike in respiratory illness among children, promoting concerns of potential transmission in the region. The ongoing pneumonia epidemic has led to hospitals being overwhelmed with patients and the suspension of classes in schools among megacities such as Beijing, Shanghai, Xiamen, and northeast China provinces. On Dec. 2, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP)’s National Health Commission held a press conference, during which Dr. Wang Dayan, the director of the National Influenza Center of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention (Chinese CDC) said regarding the respiratory illnesses outbreak in China that ventilation and disinfection should be increased in crowded public places, and disinfection and cleaning of frequently touched public facilities should be more frequent. She also said that gatherings of people in public places should be reduced and that people should wear masks at airports, stations, public transportation, farmers markets, and other places....