Health workers in China estimate that 250 million people, or 18% of its 1.4 billion population, were infected with COVID-19 in the past 20 days.

Sun Yang, a deputy director of the Chinese Center for Disease Control and Prevention, during a clandestine meeting, said the cases of COVID-19 were still rising, two people familiar with the matter said, according to the Financial Times.

The meeting, which took place at the country's National Health Commission on Wednesday, had its minutes recorded. CNN reports that a leaked copy of the purported notes circulated on Chinese social media on Friday, presenting a dramatic contrast from the official report, which said that only 3,049 new infections were reported on Tuesday. The leaked notes indicated that 37 million people were infected on Tuesday.

"The numbers look plausible, but I have no other sources of data to compare [them] with. If the estimated infection numbers mentioned here are accurate, it means the nationwide peak will occur within the next week," Ben Cowling, an epidemiology professor at the University of Hong Kong, told CNN.

The revelation follows shortly after China's decision to dismantle its strict zero-COVID policy at the beginning of December. The policy had been in place for nearly three years.

• Top China Expert: Covid 'Spreading Rapidly' After Rules Easing
• 'A Very Hard Road Ahead' for China as COVID-19 Cases Spiral