China has mandated COVID-19 anal smears for all foreign travelers entering the country, a report said Wednesday.
The government has claimed that such tests provide a higher degree of accuracy than other screening methods for the virus, the Times UK reported.
As part of the new travel requirement, there will be test hubs at Beijing and Shanghai airports, the outlet reported.
Li Tongzeng, a respiratory disease physician, said the anal swabs are better because traces of viruses stay longer in stool samples than in the nose or throat, state media reported.
The move comes after Japan asked China to stop taking exams for their citizens when they enter the country, because the smears are causing mental anguish.
“Some Japanese reported to our embassy in China that they had had anal swabs, which caused great psychological pain,” Katsunobu Kato, the Japanese cabinet secretary, told a news conference.
However, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin defended the displays as ‘science-based’
The tests are “consistent with changes in the epidemic situation and the relevant laws and regulations,” he said.