The latest COVID-19 protection guidelines are released to strengthen health protection for 10 key groups including airport cleaning

People's Daily, Beijing, August 13 (Reporter Zhang Wenting) In response to the current epidemic prevention and control situation and epidemic characteristics of the population, in order to further guide key places, key units, and key populations to do a good job in protection, the National Health Commission, together with relevant departments, has updated and supplemented the previous protection guidelines, and formed the "Key Places, Key Units, and Key Populations. Related Protection Guidelines for Normal Prevention and Control of the New Coronavirus Pneumonia Epidemic (August 2021 Edition)".

The revised guidelines have increased from 65 categories to 85 categories. In terms of key places and units, protection requirements have been added for 10 types of places and units, including docks, ports, chess and card rooms (mahjong halls), cruise ships (sightseeing boats), theaters, cultural centers, stadiums, milk tea shops, educational and training institutions, and temporary resettlement sites. At the same time, based on the current epidemic situation, the guidelines further emphasize the implementation of the main responsibility of the key places and units involved, adhere to the "joint prevention of people, objects, and environment" and "closed-loop management", and strengthen the requirements for health monitoring, vaccination, nucleic acid testing, cleaning and disinfection, and emergency response measures.

In terms of key groups, the health protection requirements for 10 key groups, including airport cleaning staff, cleaning staff for overseas and domestic flights, airport drivers, airport public security auxiliary police, airport loading and unloading workers, front-line market supervision personnel, professional rescue personnel, volunteers, community workers, tour guides, etc., are strengthened, especially for overseas flights and airport-related personnel. More stringent epidemic prevention measures are proposed. Further strengthen the implementation of epidemic prevention measures in key places, key units, and key groups, guide relevant industries, especially front-line professionals, to strictly implement protective requirements such as wearing masks, vaccination, and disinfection, and ensure that various prevention and control measures are implemented in place.

What requirements are emphasized in the “triple” (key places, key units, key groups) protection guidelines?

According to the current epidemic situation, the main responsibility of key places and key units involved is further emphasized, and the "joint prevention of people, objects and environment" and "closed-loop management" are adhered to, and the requirements for health monitoring, vaccination, nucleic acid testing, cleaning and disinfection, and emergency response are strengthened. For key groups involved, the relevant industry professionals, especially front-line professionals, are required to strictly implement the protection requirements such as wearing masks, vaccination, and disinfection to ensure that all prevention and control measures are implemented in place.

Do the public need to increase the level of protective measures when living at home?

The level of protection measures required for the public has not changed. However, the public should continue to strengthen their awareness of being the first person responsible for health, strengthen ventilation at home, do a good job of cleaning and disinfection, pay attention to personal hygiene, and seek medical treatment in time when they have symptoms; when going out, wear masks, do a good job of personal protection, strengthen hand hygiene, maintain a safe distance, avoid going to crowded places, and reduce participation in gatherings, dinners and other activities.

What are the new changes in prevention and control measures in shopping malls, swimming pools, fitness centers and other life service places?

First, temperature checks and health code verifications have been added, and only those with normal temperature and health code are allowed to enter; second, the management measures have been refined, and humane management measures such as service guidance have been proposed for groups such as the elderly who do not use or cannot operate smartphones; third, the protection level of staff has been improved, and staff must wear medical surgical masks or masks with higher protection levels throughout the process.

What are the new prevention and control requirements for chess and card rooms (mahjong halls), etc.?

The chess and card room (mahjong hall) is a newly added place in this revision of the guidelines. It is also a place with dense crowds and relatively closed space. For such places, first, it is proposed to test the body temperature and verify the health code of people entering the venue to prevent people from medium and high-risk areas from entering the venue; second, reduce the number of customers and stay time in the chess and card room (mahjong hall), increase the distance between the card tables, and reduce the gathering of people. Third, require people in the chess and card room (mahjong hall) to wear masks.

What are the prevention and control requirements for city cruise ships (sightseeing boats)?

City cruise ships (sightseeing boats) are new places added to the revised guidelines. The main risk points are crowds, small spaces and relatively closed spaces. Based on the above characteristics, first, it is advisable to stop using fully enclosed cruise ships (sightseeing boats); second, prevent symptomatic people or people from medium- and high-risk areas from entering through measures such as temperature testing and health code verification; third, reduce the density of people by taking measures such as booking tickets and sitting at intervals; fourth, people on cruise ships (sightseeing boats) wear masks throughout the journey. In addition, cruise ships (sightseeing boats) should continue to implement protective measures such as ventilation, cleaning and disinfection.

What are the prevention and control requirements for open or semi-open performance venues at tourist attractions?

The recent outbreaks in some cities are closely related to the opening or semi-opening of performance venues at tourist attractions. The possible reason is that the public has relaxed their personal protection in such places, and the venues have not effectively controlled the number of spectators, increasing the risk of outbreaks of clustered epidemics. In response to the above problems, first, do a good job in entrance detection and registration, strictly control the gate guards, and implement "double registration" of health code verification and temperature detection for entrants, and only those who are normal can enter. Second, the vaccination of staff should be done as much as possible, a staff health monitoring system should be established, and medical treatment should be sought in time if there are symptoms. Third, strictly implement personnel appointment flow control measures, promote online real-name ticket purchase and electronic tickets, encourage the use of online payment, and minimize direct contact. Fourth, strengthen on-site inspections, arrange special personnel to manage the performance site, remind the audience to wear masks correctly, sit in the right seats, and keep a safe distance. Cancel the on-site interactive sessions before and after the performance.

What are the prevention and control requirements for construction sites and other places?

The main risks at construction sites are the high mobility of personnel, easy gathering, and inadequate protection for outdoor workers such as scaffolders and rebar workers. In response to the above problems, first, all staff members should be vaccinated, and personal protection should still be paid attention to after vaccination. Second, the health of staff should be monitored well, and if any suspicious symptoms occur, medical treatment should be sought promptly. Third, the management of visitors should be strengthened, temperature checks should be taken, health code verification should be carried out, and registration should be conducted. Only those who are normal can enter. Fourth, the construction technology and process connection should be optimized to reduce the flow of personnel from different work teams at the construction site and reduce the gathering of personnel. Fifth, individual protection of staff at work posts should be strengthened.

What are the new prevention and control requirements for cross-border railway passenger transport and road passenger transport?

First, all staff members should be vaccinated, and personal protection should still be taken care of after vaccination. Second, the protection level of staff members in different positions should be refined and improved. Drivers, crew members, cleaners, porters, etc. responsible for inbound trains or cars should wear particulate protection masks and disposable gloves throughout their work; other staff members should wear medical surgical masks or masks with higher protection levels and disposable gloves throughout their work. Third, the occupancy rate of railway and road passenger transport should be controlled by zoning and grading through measures such as reasonable organization of transportation capacity, limiting the number of ticket sales and chartered groups, etc.

What are the new prevention and control requirements for high-risk places such as ports, docks, and airports?

High-risk places such as ports, docks, and airports are the focus and difficulty of "preventing people, objects, and the environment at the same time", and are also the key risk points that have led to the recent outbreak of clustered epidemics. For such places, the first is to strengthen the information management of incoming personnel and vehicles, ensure closed-loop "point-to-point, one-stop" transfer and seamless connection, and realize closed-loop management from "national gate" to "home gate". The second is to strengthen the inspection and disinfection of incoming goods, strengthen the traceability management of cold chain items, and do a good job in checking the implementation of inspection and disinfection, and conduct regular supervision and random inspection and evaluation. The third is to strengthen the management of staff, ensure that staff vaccination is fully inoculated, and implement differentiated individual protection standards according to different risk levels. Personnel in high-risk positions should be relatively fixed, registered, and implemented in a closed-loop or closed management, and the frequency of nucleic acid testing should be increased.

What new protection requirements are put forward for special groups such as the elderly?

Special groups such as the elderly are high-risk groups, and protection requirements are mainly put forward for elderly care institutions and elderly people at home. For elderly care institutions: First, the staff will be tested for body temperature at the entrance, and the visitors will be tested for body temperature, health codes will be verified and registered. Only those with normal body temperature can enter. Second, during the closed management period, visits are not allowed. During the non-closed management period, visits are allowed to control the number of visitors, activity areas and frequency of visits, and appointment management can be implemented when necessary. For the elderly at home: First, take personal protection when going out, wear masks, and the elderly with chronic lung disease and heart disease should wear masks under the professional guidance of doctors. Second, avoid going to places where people gather and spaces are confined, such as chess and card rooms (mahjong halls), etc.

What are the protection requirements for high-risk positions such as inbound flights, airport cleaning staff, drivers, etc.?

Airport cleaning staff, overseas and domestic flight cleaning staff and airport drivers are high-risk positions and are also the weak links exposed by the recent epidemic. In response to the above problems, this revision of the guidelines proposes more stringent epidemic prevention measures in terms of vaccination, nucleic acid testing and personal protection, including: First, take the initiative to get vaccinated and undergo nucleic acid testing regularly. Second, do not contact people in other positions during work, and do not go to high-risk places such as inbound aircraft and imported goods unless necessary. Third, during the cleaning and disinfection process, appropriate disinfectants should be used in accordance with the corresponding specifications and guidelines to ensure that the disinfection effect is effective. Fourth, the cleaning staff and driver positions and rest areas for inbound flights should be fixed to avoid mixing and mixing. Fifth, the garbage and waste collected by cleaning staff in the cities where inbound flights or domestic flights depart from medium and high-risk areas should be uniformly handled in accordance with relevant regulations.

What are the new measures for the management of airport loaders and unloaders and other occupations?

Airport loading and unloading workers, especially those responsible for loading and unloading of international cold chain goods and medium- and high-risk ordinary goods, are high-risk positions, and epidemic prevention requirements are mainly put forward from the two aspects of management and personal protection. First, the vaccination of staff should be done as much as possible, and nucleic acid testing should be carried out regularly. Second, different activity areas of airport cargo loading and unloading staff should be distinguished and marked to ensure physical isolation, and they should not cross each other. Third, ground cargo loading and unloading, transshipment, sorting, handling and other operators should be distinguished according to the risks of cargo flights and the types of goods, and the personnel should be relatively fixed to avoid mixing. Fourth, differentiated individual protection standards are implemented according to different risk levels. Loaders and unloaders who are in direct contact with international cold chain goods and international medium- and high-risk ordinary goods should wear particulate protection masks, disposable medical rubber or nitrile gloves, disposable bar caps, goggles or face shields.