Facing a sharp increase of COVID-19 cases from abroad, China will take strict measures to prevent imported cases, said a spokesman of the National Health Commission (NHC) on Saturday.
NHC spokesman Mi Feng said that the total number of imported cases to the Chinese mainland increased by 216 percent to 269 patients from March 11 to 20.
He also noted that the mainland reported no new domestically transmitted COVID-19 cases for the third day in a row on Friday, and provincial-level regions except the hard-hit Hubei Province had been clear of indigenous cases for nine days.
Mi also called for unswerving efforts in preventing the COVID-19 epidemic from rebounding.
