Sanya leads Hainan in novel coronavirus battle

The city of Sanya has been playing a leading role in Hainan's efforts to prevent and control the novel coronavirus pneumonia (NCP) epidemic, which has infected 157 people on the island as of Feb 12.

Sanya is the first city in the province to arrange hotels for the medical quarantine of tourists from Hubei province who traveled to the city. To date, the city has designated 12 hotels for medical quarantine in Haitang, Tianya, Jiyang, and Yazhou districts, as well as Yucai Ecological District.

In addition, the tropical city is also the first in the province to send medical teams to Hubei, the province in China most affected by the virus, and the first city in Hainan to donate fresh vegetables to Hubei.

In protecting its residents, the city also took the lead in dispatching medical teams to the provincial borderline, as well as in conducting nucleic acid testing for suspected cases and for those who had close contact with confirmed NCP patients. The city has also led all other cities in Hainan in purchasing protective materials internationally.

On Feb 5, the city of Sanya issued policies and measures to support winter fruit and vegetables sales, providing various levels of subsidies to purchasers and farmers. On the same day, it rolled out 10 policies to support the tourism industry, as well as set up a special fund of 100 million yuan ($14.35 million).

On Feb 9, another NCP patient was discharged, after undergoing comprehensive diagnosis and treatment at Sanya Central Hospital, as well as meeting the NCP discharge criteria set up by the National Health Commission. As of now, Hainan has reported a total of 20 discharged cases, of which 11 of them were in Sanya.