BEIJING — China has adopted stricter criteria for the supervision of the COVID-19 nucleic acid testing process, according to a recent circular.

Issued by the State Council joint prevention and control mechanism against COVID-19, the document requires local governments to further implement relevant regulations on the qualification of testing agencies, tightening the examination of agencies and personnel.

The management of sample collection, preservation and transportation should be standardized, including the training of personnel, it said, noting that routine supervision should also be ramped up to continuously improve testing quality.

The circular also puts forward specific requirements for the supervision of large-scale nucleic acid testing, nucleic acid testing resources, and the exit mechanism for testing institutions.