Page 22 - 2021 White Paper
P. 22
1 White Paper on the Business Environment in China
known as SARS-- was a similar virus that started phase of the epidemic should be loosened. Some
in China in 2002, also hit people over 60 the countries banned all flights to and from China; the
hardest. More than 8,000 people contracted the United States quarantines anyone who has been
virus over eight months, nearly 10% of whom in hard-hit Hubei province and refuses entry to
died. With Covid-19, ages 1-9 accounted for just foreign nationals if they had been anywhere in
1% of all Chinese infections, and none of the China. Several countries also added restrictions
deaths. Another 1% were ages 10-19. Of people against South Korea and Iran. The restrictions
in their 70s who got the virus, 8% died, the study worked to some degree. “If we had not put a travel
found, along with nearly 15% of those 80 and restriction on, we would have had many, many,
older. Early data suggested that men were more many more travel-related cases than we have,”
vulnerable, as they accounted for just more than Anthony Fauci said. But many epidemiologists
half the cases, according to the Chinese Center claimed that travel bans bought only a little
for Disease Control and Prevention. Infected men extra time, and WHO didn’t endorse them. The
died twice as often as infected women. Men might restrictions also come at a steep price. China’s
have accounted for more cases because they economy had already taken an enormous hit from
were tested more often, but the evidence was Covid-19, as has the airline industry. China also
not strong to make any good conclusions. It was exports many products, from pharmaceuticals to
possible that because Chinese men are more likely cellphones, and manufacturing disruptions caused
than women to be smokers, they could be hit massive supply chain problems. Furthermore,
harder than women. A World Health Organization China’s domestic restrictions came at a huge
study from 2019 found that 47.6% of Chinese men cost to individuals, says Lawrence Gostin, who
smoke, compared to only 1.8% of Chinese women. specializes in global health policy at Georgetown
Women also generally mount stronger immune University Law Center. (Cohen and Kupferschmidt).
responses than men. People with heart problems,
diabetes, or lung issues were also at a higher risk From its earliest onslaught, the Covid-19
for severe disease and death. Health care workers outbreak transformed how scientists
also appeared to be at particular risk. At least 1,700 communicated about fast-moving health crises.
had become infected by March 2020 while treating A torrent of data was released daily by preprint
patients in China, most in Hubei province where servers that didn’t even exist a decade ago, then
the outbreak began. Overall, nearly 15% of cases dissected on platforms such as Slack and Twitter,
among health workers were classified as severe and in the media, before formal peer review
or critical, and five had died, including Li Wenliang, began. Journal staffers were working overtime to
a 34-year-old Chinese ophthalmologist who tried get manuscripts reviewed, edited, and published
to raise an early warning about the disease. at record speeds. The venerable New England
Health care workers were likely to be particularly Journal of Medicine (NEJM) posted one Covid-19
vulnerable either because they did not realize the paper within 48 hours of submission. Viral
person they treated was infectious, did not wear genomes posted on a platform named GISAID
protective gear perfectly with every one of the were analyzed instantaneously by an assemblage
dozens of patients they treated, or because they of evolutionary biologists who shared their
were exposed when they thought they were safe, phylogenetic trees in preprints and on social
such as in dormitories where they slept. Being media. The intense communication catalyzed an
run-down from the fight didn't help (Weintraub). unusual level of collaboration among scientists
that, combined with scientific advances, was
At this point, efforts focused on containment: enabling research to move faster than during
slowing the spread of the virus within China, any previous outbreak. An unprecedented
keeping it from being exported to other countries, amount of knowledge was generated in the first
and, when patients do cross borders, aggressively two months of the outbreak. Sluggish scientific
tracing anyone they were in contact with and communication has often been a problem during
quarantining those people for two weeks. Public past outbreaks. Researchers sometimes sat on
health experts disagreed, however, about how crucial data until a paper was accepted by a high-
quickly the travel restrictions that marked the first profile, peer-reviewed journal, because they were
22
known as SARS-- was a similar virus that started phase of the epidemic should be loosened. Some
in China in 2002, also hit people over 60 the countries banned all flights to and from China; the
hardest. More than 8,000 people contracted the United States quarantines anyone who has been
virus over eight months, nearly 10% of whom in hard-hit Hubei province and refuses entry to
died. With Covid-19, ages 1-9 accounted for just foreign nationals if they had been anywhere in
1% of all Chinese infections, and none of the China. Several countries also added restrictions
deaths. Another 1% were ages 10-19. Of people against South Korea and Iran. The restrictions
in their 70s who got the virus, 8% died, the study worked to some degree. “If we had not put a travel
found, along with nearly 15% of those 80 and restriction on, we would have had many, many,
older. Early data suggested that men were more many more travel-related cases than we have,”
vulnerable, as they accounted for just more than Anthony Fauci said. But many epidemiologists
half the cases, according to the Chinese Center claimed that travel bans bought only a little
for Disease Control and Prevention. Infected men extra time, and WHO didn’t endorse them. The
died twice as often as infected women. Men might restrictions also come at a steep price. China’s
have accounted for more cases because they economy had already taken an enormous hit from
were tested more often, but the evidence was Covid-19, as has the airline industry. China also
not strong to make any good conclusions. It was exports many products, from pharmaceuticals to
possible that because Chinese men are more likely cellphones, and manufacturing disruptions caused
than women to be smokers, they could be hit massive supply chain problems. Furthermore,
harder than women. A World Health Organization China’s domestic restrictions came at a huge
study from 2019 found that 47.6% of Chinese men cost to individuals, says Lawrence Gostin, who
smoke, compared to only 1.8% of Chinese women. specializes in global health policy at Georgetown
Women also generally mount stronger immune University Law Center. (Cohen and Kupferschmidt).
responses than men. People with heart problems,
diabetes, or lung issues were also at a higher risk From its earliest onslaught, the Covid-19
for severe disease and death. Health care workers outbreak transformed how scientists
also appeared to be at particular risk. At least 1,700 communicated about fast-moving health crises.
had become infected by March 2020 while treating A torrent of data was released daily by preprint
patients in China, most in Hubei province where servers that didn’t even exist a decade ago, then
the outbreak began. Overall, nearly 15% of cases dissected on platforms such as Slack and Twitter,
among health workers were classified as severe and in the media, before formal peer review
or critical, and five had died, including Li Wenliang, began. Journal staffers were working overtime to
a 34-year-old Chinese ophthalmologist who tried get manuscripts reviewed, edited, and published
to raise an early warning about the disease. at record speeds. The venerable New England
Health care workers were likely to be particularly Journal of Medicine (NEJM) posted one Covid-19
vulnerable either because they did not realize the paper within 48 hours of submission. Viral
person they treated was infectious, did not wear genomes posted on a platform named GISAID
protective gear perfectly with every one of the were analyzed instantaneously by an assemblage
dozens of patients they treated, or because they of evolutionary biologists who shared their
were exposed when they thought they were safe, phylogenetic trees in preprints and on social
such as in dormitories where they slept. Being media. The intense communication catalyzed an
run-down from the fight didn't help (Weintraub). unusual level of collaboration among scientists
that, combined with scientific advances, was
At this point, efforts focused on containment: enabling research to move faster than during
slowing the spread of the virus within China, any previous outbreak. An unprecedented
keeping it from being exported to other countries, amount of knowledge was generated in the first
and, when patients do cross borders, aggressively two months of the outbreak. Sluggish scientific
tracing anyone they were in contact with and communication has often been a problem during
quarantining those people for two weeks. Public past outbreaks. Researchers sometimes sat on
health experts disagreed, however, about how crucial data until a paper was accepted by a high-
quickly the travel restrictions that marked the first profile, peer-reviewed journal, because they were
22
