In the four months since the new coronavirus spread from China to become a global pandemic infecting over 3 million individuals and resulting in more than 200,000 deaths, each country has responded to the crisis in its own way, reflecting that society’s politics, economy, institutions, health care system, culture and values.
Because we are still in the midst of the pandemic, it is too early to conclude which countries have been the most effective in managing the crisis. But at this point, public health experts agree that Taiwan, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia and Germany have been among the more successful in containing the virus. Singapore and Hong Kong were considered relatively successful at first, but the positive early results were brought into question by subsequent relapses.
When measured based on the number of deaths per 1 million population, the countries that have suffered the most include Spain (548 per million), Italy (481), the United Kingdom (423), France (386), Sweden (283), and the United States (213). Comparable data for the more successful cases are as follows: Taiwan (0.3), Hong Kong (0.5), Singapore (three), Japan (four), Australia (four), New Zealand (four), South Korea (five) and Germany (83).