China under-reported coronavirus cases by half, leaked documents reveal

The great communist Covid cover-up: Chinese doctors were recording at least DOUBLE the number of coronavirus cases that Beijing was reporting to the world in February

  • Data leaked from Wuhan gives a glimpse of what China really knew about Covid 
  • Documents show that cases and deaths were both under-reported to the public 
  • They also reveal that early-stage tests only worked about half of the time  
  • Data shows Hubei was also suffering a flu epidemic at the time coronavirus hit 

China under-reported its coronavirus cases and deaths by up to half during the early stages of the pandemic, leaked documents have revealed.

On February 10, China reported 2,478 new cases of the virus across the entire country – but leaked data shows that, on the same date, Hubei province alone logged 5,918 cases.

Meanwhile on March 7, Hubei was officially reporting a cumulative death toll of 2,986, but documents show it actually stood at 3,456.

The official figures, which were reported across the world, downplayed the severity of the outbreak at a time when world leaders were trying to devise their own response strategies – leaving many unprepared for what was to come.

China under-reported its coronavirus cases and deaths during the early stages of the pandemic, leaked documents reveal, giving a glimpse of the scale of the issue (file image)

The documents, comprising 117 pages, were handed to CNN by a whistleblower inside the Hubei Provincial Center for Disease Control and Prevention, which was at the epicentre of the outbreak.

Beijing has long been accused of under-reporting its coronavirus numbers, but the data gives the first glimpse at the scope of the problem.

The documents also reveal for the first time that Hubei was in the midst of a major flu epidemic at the time coronavirus struck.

The province was reporting up to 20 times the normal number of seasonal flu cases in December 2019, centered in the cities of Yichang and Xianning.

Wuhan, where coronavirus would first emerge, was third worst-affected.

While there is no suggestion that the outbreaks are linked, the flu epidemic likely left health officials stretched and unprepared for the emergence of a new illness.

The documents also reveal a shambles among China’s early testing regime, which contributed to the cases being under-reported.

According to the data, the nucleic acid tests which were initially used to diagnose the virus only worked between 30 per cent and 50 per cent of the time.

That meant scientists were often forced to use other methods – such as scans of the lungs – to diagnose patients they were sure had the virus, but whose tests kept coming back negative.

But because of the way China’s reporting system worked, only those cases which had been confirmed by the test were publicly reported.

All other cases were marked down as ‘suspected’ or ‘clinically diagnosed’.

While bureaucrats would have been aware of both figures, and may have been aware of the problems with testing, they chose only to report cases with a positive test – at least initially.

China did start adding ‘clinically diagnosed’ cases to its totals in mid-February, but by then the had already spread far beyond its own borders. 

Yanzhong Huang, a fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations who specilaises in Chinese public health, said: ‘It was clear they did make mistakes.

‘Not just mistakes that happen when you’re dealing with a novel virus, also bureaucratic and politically-motivated errors in how they handled it. 

‘These had global consequences.’

While Huang does not believe correct reporting would have stopped the pandemic, it undoubtedly gave off the false impression that the outbreak was less severe than it truly was.

Greater transparency from China would have given other countries a better chance to prepare for the virus, while in reality many were caught on the back foot.