Collapsing Dire Pandemic Alarming Health Crisis Deadly Disease Wave - 22.8% Positivity Rate

Resurgent pandemic in Mainland China, a July outbreak looms? A COVID-19 resurgence grips Mainland China with grassroots warnings of a full-scale outbreak in July. Is the CCP using Trump's China visit as a propaganda tool? Miles Yu reveals the truth behind the U.S.-China summit. Has U.S.-China decoupling become inevitable with no room left for cooperation? COVID-19 resurgence in Mainland China, grassroots warn of July outbreak. In recent weeks, COVID-19 has surged across Mainland China, sparking alarm. Official data reports over 440,000 new confirmed cases in May 2025, with positivity rates soaring to 22.8%. Despite the Chinese Communist Party downplaying the crisis, claiming the virus is highly transmissible but less severe, voices from the ground paint a far grimmer picture. Some medical professionals even predict a potential explosion of cases by July. According to the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, CDC, fever clinics nationwide saw daily patient visits ranging from 56,000 to 77,000 in May. Over 440,000 new cases were confirmed, including more than 600 severe cases and seven deaths. Testing shows the dominant strain is the sixth-generation sub-variant of Omicron. On June 10, Zhang Nanshan, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and director of the Guangzhou National Laboratory, stated at a press conference that 22.8% of flu-like cases tested positive for COVID-19 in the past week. He acknowledged the virus' high transmissibility but claimed its pathogenicity has significantly weakened. However, grassroots reports suggest the situation is far worse than official narratives admit. Liu Kun, pseudonym, a traditional Chinese medicine clinic owner in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, told the Epoch Times that infections among adults and children have spiked in recent months, driving up clinic visits. Initially, children were hit hardest, showing symptoms like persistent coughs, excessive phlegm and fatigue. Recovery times are notably prolonged, with some patients still unwell after months of rest. Liu believes China's pandemic has never truly subsided, instead recurring in waves. He suspects this latest surge began in the South. While official channels suppress data, he estimates severe cases are numerous, with only hospital and crematorium workers privy to the true toll. Liu noted that severe cases predominantly affect the elderly, but sudden deaths have surged among 30 to 50-year-olds, often attributed to heart attacks, strokes or cerebral hemorrhages. These deaths are so abrupt, he said, citing a friend's wife who died suddenly while feeding chickens, with no prior symptoms. Liu also observed a local custom in Hohhot, where firecrackers signal a death. The sound of firecrackers has grown constant lately, he said. The streets are filled with grief, hinting at many lives lost. Additionally, Liu noticed troubling trends among younger people, including disorientation, memory loss and vacant stares, possibly linked to COVID-19 after-effects or the new variant. As a traditional Chinese medicine practitioner, he feels privy to more candid insights. Based on current trends, he warns, July could see a severe outbreak, potentially explosive. People must stay vigilant and protect themselves. China is not only grappling with prolonged health and social consequences but is also witnessing an increasingly severe reproductive crisis. Birth rates have dropped sharply across the nation, with several provinces reporting a decline of over 50 percent. Meanwhile, government incentives to encourage childbirth have yielded little tangible effect. A steep national decline. According to a report by consulting firm Mycos, the number of newborns in 2024 has dropped significantly compared to the birth peaks of 20, 162, 017 in many major provinces. Even Shandong, once dubbed China's fertility powerhouse, saw a staggering 63 percent decrease. Other populous provinces including Hunan, Hubei, Anhui, Jilin, Jiangxi and Fujian reported birth rate drops between 50 percent and 60 percent. Furthermore, national statistics released in early 2024 from 13 provinces showed that eight of them had negative natural population growth rates. Economically significant provinces like Shandong, Jiangsu and Sichuan recorded substantial population declines, with unemployment rates of minus 1.67 percent zero, minus 3.02 percent zero. Also respected, young people turning away from marriage and parenthood. Prolonged economic downturn, high youth unemployment and bleak career prospects have fueled a widespread sense of pessimism. For many born in the 1980s, 1990s and even the 2000s, marriage and having children are no longer a given. Wang Li, a woman born in the 1980s, told the Epoch Times, I am still unmarried and have no stable job. If society stays like this, having a child would only mean passing hardship on to them. I'd rather not have kids. She added that not getting married or having children has become so common that it's no longer seen as strange. This sentiment is echoed by Jin Yan Yalis, a 90s-born resident of Jinan. Both my husband and I are unemployed. We're working odd jobs to repay our mortgage and avoid losing the house we bought when we got married. More than half of my classmates are still single due to financial constraints. Even those who are married hesitate to have children because it's just too expensive. Child-rearing costs beyond reach. A study by the Yuwa Population Research Institute in Beijing found that the average cost of raising a child in China now stands at $74,600, zero cents, equivalent to 6.3 times the country's per capita GDP. This cost has become an insurmountable burden for middle- and low-income families, especially amid a tough labor market and rising education expenses. Failed population policies. After decades of the one-child policy, China began relaxing restrictions in 2016 with a two-child policy, followed by a three-child policy in 2021. However, data shows these efforts have largely failed. China saw negative population growth in both 2022 and 2023, a trend expected to continue into the next decade. The Chinese government has tried everything, from offering birth subsidies and housing support to free matchmaking services, yet none have yielded meaningful results. Renowned China analyst Gordon Chang wrote in Newsweek that the fertility decline is not just the result of policy, but reflects deeper societal changes and growing anxiety among the younger generation. A generation squeezed from both ends. Another key reason why young people are rejecting parenthood is the burden of supporting both elderly parents and potential children. Gao Feng, a man born in the 1980s, explained, We're only children ourselves, now responsible for our aging parents and future kids. With mortgage payments each month, how could we possibly consider more children? Now the government wants us to have two or even three kids. It's suffocating. Zhao Jun, a private business owner, criticized the government's mindset. The authorities naively assumed that simply allowing more children would lead to a population boom. Ridiculous. If someone makes only 5,000 yuan a month, how can they afford a family? Ripple effects. Preschools close. Teachers unemployed. The birth decline is also affecting the preschool education sector. Data released by China's Ministry of Education on June 11, 2024, shows the number of preschool teachers dropped from 3.07 million in 2023 to 2.83 million in 2024, a reduction of 240,000 in a single year. In 2023, the number had already dropped by 170,000 compared to 2022. Yang Ying, a 2024 graduate in preschool education, has yet to find a relevant job. Most of my classmates are unemployed. Some switched to primary education while others are preparing for graduate school, she said. Data from China's National Bureau of Statistics further highlights the severity of the demographic crisis. In 2024, only 9.54 million births were recorded, down slightly from 9.02 million in 2023 and 9.56 million in 2022. These figures are a far cry from the 10.62 million recorded in 2021, the year China officially ended its one-child policy and launched the three-child initiative. Prolonged low birth rates will have wide-reigning consequences, including a shrinking labor force, increasing social welfare costs, and the eventual collapse of consumption-driven economic models. Chinese regime hires U.S. influencers, experts warn of backfire. Amid worsening U.S.-China relations, Beijing has begun inviting American influencers to tour China on all expense-paid trips, including flights, hotels, and meals — the goal to portray a real China to Western audiences. According to state media like China Youth Daily, the China Global Youth Influencer Exchange program targets influencers with at least 300,000 followers on platforms like Instagram, YouTube, TikTok, X, Twitter, and Facebook. Applicants must love Chinese culture and have a clean public record. A post on the overseas Chinese magazine College Daily said selected participants would receive official invitation letters, visa support, and full logistical coverage. The campaign promises to turn your account into a viral hit overnight. While some influencers have actively promoted the CCP, such as pro-China TikToker Graves, others, like Taiwanese YouTuber Potter King, have exposed China's manipulative outreach through youth associations and subtle disinformation campaigns. Dr. Chung-Chi Tung of Taiwan's National Defense and Security Research Institute told the Epoch Times that this influencer outreach is a calculated strategy. By providing resources and traffic boosts, the CCP tries to shape perceptions via apolitical content, masking its growing internal issues. However, the campaign includes political screening. Any influencer with a negative record is disqualified. Dr. Chung warns that Beijing's strategy may backfire. Some influencers might defy the script, exposing unsanctioned realities. Ironically, any online backlash could only amplify their popularity. Chung describes the CCP's influencer tactic as raise, trap, destroy, attract with perks, manipulate the message, and blackball dissenters. He cautions that influencers who aid CCP propaganda may face consequences later when applying for U.S. visas or facing increased scrutiny in Taiwan. Multi-millionaire business owner flees to the U.S. after COVID lockdowns destroy life. Chinese entrepreneur Song Jiahan, born in 1994, shared his harrowing story with the Epoch Times. After starting his business at age 17 and building a diversified empire spanning advertising, real estate, supermarkets, and restaurants, Song lost everything during the pandemic due to Beijing's draconian lockdowns and hostility toward private enterprise. Song said his hometown in Jiangsu Province had no COVID cases yet was locked down dozens of times. Each reopening was short-lived. Health inspectors would reseal his stores within days. Ever-changing policies made normal operations impossible. During a critical business trip from Lianyonggang to Shenzhen, he was turned away due to conflicting quarantine rules. Stranded on a highway for two weeks without food or fuel, he was forced to abandon his car and climb over barricades to survive. Even his gated community was padlocked, preventing food purchases. Officials' relatives, meanwhile, were free to move and sell overpriced supplies. One local leader's cousin charged 10 times market price for essentials. Government corruption hit Song's construction business hard. Authorities withheld over 2 million RMB in payments, citing special circumstances. When he complained, they brushed him off. Adding insult to injury, a 1.2 million RMB loan was called in by the bank. Initially promised refinancing, the bank reneged and cut him off. His company's cash flow collapsed. After joining the white paper movement protests in Shanghai in late 2022, police detained him for questioning. They asked, You're a businessman? Why are you involved? Rumors spread that he had fled. Creditors rushed in. The business couldn't recover. His marriage also crumbled. Divorced and destitute, his child was left in his elderly parents' care. At one point, he considered suicide. By early 2023, Song had sold his shop's home and car to pay staff. I felt like a hollow brick. I couldn't stand anymore, he said. To him, zero COVID was not about health, but about career advancement. Local officials locked people down to earn political points. The people suffered. Song recalls rising civil unrest. Some drove cars into crowds. Others jumped off buildings or bridges. But the government silenced it all. Eventually, Song fled to the U.S. to rebuild his life. I'm not chasing wealth. I just want to live. Even in America, Chinese police contacted his parents. You don't want us visiting every day, do you? he recalled them saying. This cross-bedder harassment makes him feel haunted still. Song has restarted his business, but says the emotional wounds remain. His experience, he said, is not unique. Just one among millions of Chinese entrepreneurs crushed. Under CCP policy, India plane crash kills 241. Only one miraculous survivor. On June 12, Indian Airlines flight AI-171 crashed less than a minute after takeoff, killing 241 of the 242 passengers on board. The sole survivor is now being treated in hospital. It marks one of the deadliest aviation disasters in the past decade. The Boeing 787-8 was en route from Ahmedabad to London, carrying 242 passengers, 169 Indians, 53 British citizens, seven Portuguese, and one Canadian. The plane struck a dormitory at BJ Medical College, triggering a massive blaze and damaging multiple buildings. Police reported at least five deaths and 50 injuries on the ground. British citizen Vishwas Kumar Ramesh, seated in 11A, miraculously survived. He escaped through the emergency exit and was transported to the hospital with non-life-maintenance injuries. Ramesh, age 40, had been visiting relatives in India and was returning to the UK with his brother. He later told Hindustan Times, When I woke up I was surrounded by bodies, I was terrified, I stood up and ran, debris was everywhere. Then someone pulled me into an ambulance and brought me here.