BEIJING, Sept. 8 (Xinhua) -- The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee had adopted extraordinary measures to tackle the extraordinary incident of the COVID-19 epidemic, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Tuesday.

Xi, also general secretary of the CPC Central Committee and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the comments at a meeting held in Beijing to commend role models in China's fight against the epidemic.

Faced with the sudden and ferocious epidemic, China fought a "people's war," Xi said.

In little more than a month, the rising spread of the virus was contained; in around two months, the daily increase in domestic coronavirus cases fell to single digits; and in about three months, a decisive victory was secured in the battle to defend Hubei Province and its capital city of Wuhan -- once the hardest-hit areas by the virus in the country.

China went on to win wars against sporadic outbreaks in recent months, securing major strategic achievements in the fight against the epidemic, Xi said.

The CPC Central Committee has insisted on making people's lives and health the first priority, Xi said, noting that all-out efforts were made to ensure that no single patient was left unattended to.

The cost of treating COVID-19 patients was fully covered by the government, Xi added.

Under the strong leadership of the CPC Central Committee, China had effectively curbed the spread of the COVID-19 epidemic and protected people's lives and health to the greatest extent, Xi said.

With a united will, the Chinese people put up a strong defense to contain the COVID-19 epidemic, Xi noted.

Rallying the support of the entire country, China made unprecedented efforts to save lives, said Xi.

Millions of medical workers fought the COVID-19 epidemic at the front line across the country, with over 40,000 medical workers rushing from other parts of the country to support Hubei Province, Xi said.

He noted that the Chinese economy is steadily turning for the better as the country has coordinated epidemic containment with economic growth after the sudden outbreak of the epidemic.

China has become the first major economy to return to growth since the COVID-19 pandemic, and has taken the lead in the world in both epidemic control and economic recovery, said Xi.

"This has demonstrated China's strong ability of recovery and enormous vitality," Xi said.