China to stop reporting asymptomatic COVID cases

• Beijing and several other major cities are currently facing large coronavirus outbreaks and surging case numbers.
• The Chinese government began loosening its strict "zero COVID" policy this month by reducing lockdown requirements, rules surrounding isolation at state quarantine centers and eliminating regular mandatory testing.

What they're saying: Health officials said Wednesday that in the absence of mandatory testing, asymptomatic cases have become impossible to track.

• "It's impossible to get accurate statistics for asymptomatic cases given the fact that many asymptomatic cases choose not to take nucleic acid tests," a notice on China's National Health Commission's website reads.

The big picture: The veracity of the Chinese Communist Party's official COVID case and death figures have been long under question and have not been independently verified.

• Still, asymptomatic cases have so far accounted for the vast majority of the country's reported new cases, according to AP.
• Under the country's "zero COVID" policy, people who tested positive for the virus — even those who did not present symptoms — were forced to isolate in a government facility.

Go deeper: China battles rising COVID-19 cases after easing precautions