China announced a slight easing of its zero-COVID rules on November 11, 2022, and then a major relaxation on December 7, 2022. We estimate that the ensuing wave of SARS-CoV-2 infections caused 1.41 million deaths in China during December 2022-February 2023, substantially higher than that reported through official channels.
Keywords: COVID-19; China; SARS-CoV-2; coronavirus disease; importations; mortality; respiratory infections; severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2; vaccine-preventable diseases; viruses; zoonoses.