BEIJING -- China has steadily entered a new phase of COVID-19 prevention and control, which was downgraded under the management of Class B infectious diseases, a National Health Commission (NHC) spokesperson said Thursday.

China's overall COVID-19 response situation is improving, with sporadic COVID-19 cases reported in parts of the country, said spokesperson Mi Feng at a press conference held by the State Council joint COVID-19 prevention and control mechanism.

China has been optimizing COVID-19 prevention and control measures based on the evolving situation over the past more than three years and has succeeded in preventing the widespread prevalence of more virulent and fatal variants, Mi added.

Liang Wannian, head of the COVID-19 response expert panel under the NHC, said at the press conference that the country has withstood the challenge posed by the latest wave of COVID-19 infections and established sound community immunity, adding that the wave can be said to be basically over.

As the global COVID-19 pandemic is ongoing, China will further improve the Class B management measures, Mi said, adding that the country will enhance its epidemic surveillance and regular warning capacity, ensure COVID-19 prevention and control at places such as nursing homes and schools, and accelerate COVID-19 vaccination.

According to Yang Feng, an official with the disease prevention and control bureau under the NHC, the country will continue to improve its online direct reporting system for infectious diseases, and will carry out law-enforcement inspections for the reporting of information concerning such diseases.

More than 241.68 million people aged over 60 have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 so far, accounting for 96.1 percent of the population of that age group, Yang told the press conference. ■