11 million Wuhan residents to be tested in a week

Authorities in the Chinese city of Wuhan plan to test all 11 million residents for COVID-19 by the end of next week, in a massive push to extinguish any remnants of the coronavirus from the original epicenter of the global pandemic.

The all-encompassing mission — announced Monday and paid for by district governments — contrasts with shortages of testing kits in some other countries, including the United States, where people have complained about not being able to get a test despite having coronavirus symptoms.

But the scope of the endeavor underscores official sensitivities about any new flare-up in Wuhan, where the virus emerged in a market late last year. It comes after officials reported six new coronavirus cases in two days, confounding health experts after a 35-day streak without infections.