The World Health Organization faced sharp scrutiny as a Lancet Commission report highlighted what it calls major gaps and misunderstandings in the global pandemic response. The Commission, supported by experts led by Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, emphasizes that WHO acted quickly after receiving early warnings from China on December 30, 2019, and that its actions were immediate, sustained, and potentially lifesaving from the outset.
The Lancet study, reported by several Prensa Ibérica outlets including Faro de Vigo, describes the management of the pandemic as a broad failure at the global level. It notes that millions of lives could have been saved and recommends ongoing attention to the needs of vulnerable populations, warning that progress toward sustainable development goals has been compromised in many places.
The Lancet team argues that delays in declaring a Public Health Emergency of International Concern, coupled with uneven national cooperation on travel rules, testing strategies, supply chains, and reporting, undermined early containment efforts. The report includes the perspective of American epidemiologist Jeffrey V. Lazarus, who is affiliated with institutions in Spain, and mentions involvement from OHSglobal, Hospital Clinic, and the University of Barcelona.
In a formal statement, WHO outlined a timeline beginning December 30, 2019, noting the initial alert of a pneumonia with an unknown cause in the United States and the subsequent inquiry to Chinese health authorities for more information. The organization also recounts a global alert issued on January 5, 2020, urging member states to identify cases, provide care, and limit transmission of acute respiratory pathogens with potential for wider spread.
On January 30, 2020, with 98 confirmed cases and no deaths outside China across 18 countries, Tedros convened the WHO Emergency Committee, which declared the outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. Interim guidance was issued to help nations prepare and respond.
The Lancet Commission’s report on lessons for the future of COVID-19 does not assess every country’s response in isolation. It notes that several Western European countries experienced high case numbers in the early stages, particularly Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and England. The Commission points out that the routes into Europe for many infections involved air travel and that a large number of cases emerged in late January and February 2020. It also indicates that early testing was uneven and that the rate of new infections accelerated in March 2020, criticizing some governments for aiming to suppress rather than stop transmission.
Regarding how the virus spread, the report highlights the possibility of asymptomatic or presymptomatic transmission. It also notes that there were warnings about this mode of spread before it was widely acknowledged, with guidance issued in late January about surveillance for such transmission.
In discussions about airborne transmission, the Lancet Commission says the evaluation took far too long, with formal recognition of the risk arriving more than a year after the initial warnings. WHO counters this by noting its leadership in coordinating a broad, multidisciplinary international process to discuss and reach consensus on airborne pathogens and to translate that knowledge into policy for healthcare and beyond.