Science was the easy part; blunders cause testing disparities worldwide
Scientists around the world were waiting at their computers in early January when China released the coronavirus genetic code, the blueprint for creating tests and vaccines. Within days, labs from Hong Kong to Berlin had designed tests and shared their research with others.
Within about two weeks, Australia had its own tests, and even citizens in the most far-flung regions of the country could be tested. Laboratories in Singapore and South Korea ramped up test kit production and ordered extra supplies. That quick work allowed them to test hundreds of thousands of people, isolate the sick and — so far, at least — contain the spread of the disease.
By contrast, anxious citizens in the United States and many parts of Western Europe have endured byzantine delays or have been denied testing altogether. As the coronavirus pandemic shuts down world capitals and paralyzes entire economies, political leaders are rushing to make testing more widely available. But experts say that the decisive moment, when aggressive testing might have allowed officials to stay ahead of the disease, passed more than a month ago. It was not a question of science. Researchers say a viral test is relatively easy to develop. Rather, scientists say, the chasm between the testing haves and have-nots reflects politics, public health strategies and, in some cases, blunders.
The world may be paying for those missteps right now. Testing is central to the effort to fight the spread of the virus. Countries that test widely can isolate infected people and prevent or slow new infections. Without early and widespread testing, health officials and policymakers will be flying blind, epidemiologists say.
“You cannot fight a fire blindfolded,” said Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the World Health Organization’s director general.
“And we cannot stop this pandemic if we don’t know who is infected.” But testing has been inconsistent in what has been a patchwork response to the epidemic worldwide. Some countries, like France, did not have a strategy that centered on testing to map the advance of the virus. Testing in Italy has been plagued by political squabbles. The United Kingdom developed tests but decided not to use them widely as Singapore and South Korea had done. Other countries were caught off guard by shortages of testing chemicals.
As the virus reached into the United States in late January, President Donald Trump and his administration spent weeks downplaying the potential for an outbreak. The Centers for Disease Control opted to develop its own test rather than rely on private laboratories or the WHO.
The outbreak quickly outpaced Trump’s predictions, and the CDC’s test kits turned out to be flawed, leaving the United States far behind other parts of the world — both technically and politically.