Unable to Get Cold Medicine, Chinese People Rush to This Place in Panic...

Cold Medicine Shortage in China Spreads to Japan
Tokyo Pharmacies Implement 'One Item Per Person' Purchase Limit

On the 21st, citizens are lining up in front of a pharmacy in Beijing, China. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Recently, as COVID-19 restrictions have been eased in China, the surge in confirmed cases is even affecting the supply of pharmaceuticals in Japan.

According to the Asahi Shimbun on the 24th, pharmacies near Ikebukuro Station in Tokyo are limiting the number of cold medicine sales. A pharmacy in Shinagawa Ward posted a notice in Japanese at the popular cold medicine section stating, "Up to 2 items per person." In Korean, English, and Chinese, it was written as "Up to 1 item per person."

This is related to the spread of COVID-19 in China. Recently, as China shifted from a "zero COVID" policy to a "with COVID" approach and eased restrictions, COVID patients have surged, causing shortages of medicines. On local social networking services (SNS), posts have been appearing about the formation of a black market trading COVID treatments like Paxlovid and fever reducers.

This situation has spread to Japan. According to the newspaper, since early this month, Chinese customers attempting to purchase large quantities of cold medicine have flooded Tokyo pharmacies, leading to shortages of cold medicine. People with family or acquaintances in China, which is experiencing a pharmaceutical crisis, have started stockpiling cold medicine in Japan.

A citizen from Anhui Province, China, told the newspaper, "So far, I have bought 30 to 40 cold medicines at Japanese pharmacies," adding, "When I return to China, half of my bag will probably be filled with medicine."

Citizens are moving while wearing masks at a subway station in Beijing, China. Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

According to Chinese health authorities, the daily number of new confirmed COVID-19 cases in China recently stands at around 4,000 to 5,000. However, the actual number of confirmed cases has been found to far exceed the official figures. Bloomberg News reported that about 248 million people, approximately 18% of the total population, have contracted COVID-19 in China this month.

Suspected of manipulating statistics, Chinese authorities have ultimately decided to stop announcing the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases. On the 25th, the National Health Commission of China (NHC) announced on its website, "From now on, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention will disclose related information for reference and research purposes," stating this decision. The daily statistics of new infections, which had been released every morning for the previous day, were no longer published starting that day.

The specific reason why the NHC stopped releasing statistics has not been disclosed. However, some analysts suggest that this move was influenced by ongoing criticism that the official statistics from Chinese authorities significantly differ from the actual situation.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.