GENEVA: On Wednesday, the World Health Organization said that China's "very narrow" definition of Covid deaths was not reflecting the true impact of the outbreak.
Since Beijing abruptly lifted years of stringent restrictions last month, there has been an increase in the number of Covid infections in China, prompting hospitals and crematoriums to become overwhelmed.
Michael Ryan, WHO director for emergencies, told reporters, "We still do not have complete data."
"In terms of hospital admissions, ICU admissions, and particularly deaths, we believe that the current numbers being published from China under-represent the true impact of the disease."
Since December, China has only recorded 22 Covid deaths and drastically loosened the criteria used to classify these deaths. As a result, Beijing's own statistics about the unprecedented wave are now widely considered to be inaccurate.
Ryan pointed out that Beijing's definition of what constitutes a Covid death is "requires a respiratory failure" due to a Covid infection.