WHO says first alerted about COVID-19 by its office, not Chinese authorities

The World Health Organisation (WHO) on June 29 said that it was first informed by its regional office in China about the coronavirus crisis and not by the Chinese government. According to the Geneva-based health body, WHO’s Country Office in China picked up a media statement by the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission from their website on cases of 'viral pneumonia' in Wuhan on December 31. WHO said that it's China office notified the International Health Regulations (IHR) focal point in the WHO Western Pacific Regional Office about the Wuhan Municipal Health Commission media statement of the cases and provided a translation of it following which several health authorities from around the world contacted WHO seeking additional information.

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WHO has been accused by US President Donald Trump for failing to alert the world on time about the viral disease from China. Trump accused the global body of favouring the Chinese Communist Party and alleged that it deliberately delayed to declare it a pandemic. WHO had earlier in the timeline of its communications said that Wuhan municipal health commission in the province of Hubei had reported cases of 'viral pneumonia' without specifying who had notified the health agency.

WHO director Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus had also told the media that the first report had come from China, again without specifying whether it was from the Chinese authorities or through another source. Now, the UN health body has issued a fresh timeline of its communications where it said that it was first informed about 'viral pneumonia' cases in Wuhan by his regional office in China and not by the Chinese authorities. 

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WHO timeline

WHO said that on January 1 it requested information on the reported cluster of atypical pneumonia cases in Wuhan from the Chinese authorities and then followed-up again on January 2. The Chinese authorities responded to WHO's request on January 3 providing information on the cluster of cases of ‘viral pneumonia of unknown cause’ identified in Wuhan. WHO on January 4 tweeted that there was a cluster of pneumonia cases – with no deaths – in Wuhan, Hubei province in China, and that investigations to identify the cause were underway. On January 5, WHO shared detailed information about a cluster of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause through the IHR (2005) Event Information System, which is accessible to all Member States. On January 9, WHO reported that Chinese authorities have determined that the outbreak is caused by a novel coronavirus.

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