In its second interim report, the Independent Pandemic Preparedness and Response Panel, based in Switzerland, determined that Beijing could have been more vigorous in applying public health measures when cases were first detected in the city of Wuhan, Hubei province.
“What is clear to the panel is that public health measures could have been applied more vigorously by local and national health authorities in China in January (2020),” the report said.
The first cases in Wuhan took place between December 12 and 29, 2019, according to city officials. The cases were not reported to WHO until December 31. By the time Wuhan was blocked on January 23, 2020, the virus had already spread to Japan, South Korea, Thailand and the United States.
Several countries, mainly the United States and Australia, have accused Beijing of minimizing the severity of the outbreak during its early stages and preventing an effective response until it is too late.
The independent panel, co-chaired by former New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark and former Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, also criticized WHO for its delay in sounding the alarm and called for reforms to the UN agency.
Despite being alerted to the cases until the end of December, WHO 2019 did not call its emergency committee until January 22, 2020 – and then waited until January 30 to declare an international emergency.
“It is not clear why the committee did not meet until the third week of January, nor why it was unable to agree to the declaration of a public health emergency of international interest when it was first called,” the report said.
“Although the term pandemic is neither used nor defined in the International Health Regulations (2005), its use serves to draw attention to the seriousness of a health event,” said the report.
He concluded that WHO “has no power to do the work expected of it”. WHO has “severely limited” power to validate reports of pandemic disease outbreaks, or to deploy support in local areas, he said.
The international community needs to achieve a “global redefinition” of how to deal with pandemics, said the review panel, which is due to present a final report at the World Health Assembly in May.