China reported 12,658 COVID-19 related deaths at hospitals from Jan 13 to 19, the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention said on Saturday.

A healthcare worker places samples into a COVID-19 antigen test kit. (Photo: CFP)

Of these fatalities, 681 were caused by respiratory failure due to COVID-19 infection, and the rest were the result of a combination of infection and other diseases.

As of Jan 19, there were nearly 472,000 hospitalized COVID-19 patients in China including about 51,700 in severe condition.

By that date the country had also fully vaccinated over 1.28 billion people, including 230.1 million people 60 and above.

Starting on Dec 25, the National Health Commission stopped publishing daily COVID-19 epidemic information and said the China CDC will publicize relevant information for reference and research purposes on a monthly basis.