35.3 Overall Score

China

Data as of Aug 1
Next 》

93.4 Public Health
Directives
11.1 Financial
Response
4 Fact-Based
Communication

93.4 Public Health
Directives
11.1 Financial
Response
4 Fact-Based
Communication

China’s aggressive lockdowns played a key role in controlling case and death rates. However, its low score is driven by multiple factors, including the country’s minimal financial response and lack of press freedom and fact-based communications. China’s failure to report testing obscures understanding of actual COVID-19 dynamics within the country.

Pre-COVID Conditions

Despite one of the best debt-to-GDP ratios, China’s relative underinvestment in healthcare infrastructure pre-COVID—notably hospital beds—limited its capacity to rapidly respond immediately to the crisis.

Debt/GDP ratio 50.6%
GDP/capita $20,984
Gini coefficient (out of 100) 38.5
Infant mortality rate (out of 1,000 live births) 7
Healthcare access score (out of 100) 74.2
Hospital beds/1,000 People 29.9

Government Response

Select a data point for more information
(Data points represent policy level as of Aug 1.)

93.4

Public Health Directives

Strict stay-at-home orders issued on February 1st mitigated a worse spread of the virus and helped drive China’s strong public health policy, though its limited emergency healthcare spending and testing policy push its score lower.

Stay at home order 1
Public gathering restrictions 4
School closings 3
Public event cancellations 2
Testing policy 3
Emergency healthcare investments/capita $14.31
Travel restrictions 3
Tests/1,000 people NO DATA
Contact tracing 2

11.1

Financial Response

China’s stimulus package was limited and provided minimal debt relief or income support.

Financial stimulus as share of GDP 4.1%
Income support 1
Debt forebearance 1

Fact-Based Communication

China’s government has promoted factually incorrect information about COVID-19 and has limited press reporting on the pandemic.

Reliance on science/fact based information 3
Press freedom 3

COVID-19 Status as of Aug 1

China’s early, restrictive lockdown likely contributed to it having among the lowest death and case rates in the Index, based on CCP reporting. However, China has not reported any official data on testing, and given its limited use of facts and press limitations, it is unclear how reliable these numbers are.

Total deaths 4,661
Death rate per 100K 3.2
Total cases 87,655
Cases per 100K 61
Percent of positive tests NO DATA

Daily cases Level 1 Lockdown Level 3 Lockdown

	Date	Status	New Cases/1M
1	Apr 08	Wuhan lockdown ends	0.05
2	Jul 19	Urumqi (Xinjian capital) enters lockdown	0.04

Differentiating Factors

COVID-19 could worsen inequality: The pandemic is likely to exacerbate inequality in China, which spends just 3 percent of its annual GDP on social welfare programs like unemployment insurance and affordable housing. By comparison, most developed countries spend 12 percent of GDP. Read More
Limited transparency over data: China has a history of opaque governance that prioritizes stability over transparency, resulting in mutual distrust between the public and authorities, and raising questions about the accuracy of its published COVID-19 data. Read More
Out-of-pocket expenses hitting the vulnerable: China's healthcare is largely private, with out-of-pocket expenses three times as high as the U.S. average, hindering widespread access to medical care. Read More

Compared with Neighboring Countries

74.3
India 1,695,988
Cases 1,229
Per 1M 36,511
Deaths

India scores just above the median, a large drop-off in recent months, keyed by substantial weakening of restrictions and worsening financial support.
90
Japan 34,372
Cases 272
Per 1M 1,006
Deaths

Japan has a strong overall score, driven by its generous financial response and a reliance on facts, although its public health policy is very weak.
52
South Korea 14,336
Cases 280
Per 1M 301
Deaths

South Korea has a relatively strong score, brought down some by its very weak financial policy; its public health score is likely underestimated here, given the data’s limitations to adequately account for the impacts of the country’s advanced contact tracing.

Be the source of actionable insight.

Select one of the subscription options below to read the full Covid-19 Global Response Index. Unlock even more global intelligence with a subscription to FP Insider.

Best Value

One-Year All Access
FP Insider

$450

1-year of full access to FP Insider exclusive content and subscription benefits

See benefits ▾

All FP Analytics Special Reports, including the COVID-19 Global Response Index
FP Analytics Power Maps
Editorial conference calls
Unlimited articles on ForeignPolicy.com
Digital and print editions of FP’s award-winning magazine
Print archive, containing 50 years of FP journalism
Subscriber-only newsletters
Security and defense news alerts
Bonus episodes of FP podcasts
FP mobile app

Hide benefits

One-Month
COVID-19 Report Bundle

$150

30-day Access to the COVID-19 Global Response Index and Global Race to Vaccinate report

Looking for group access? Contact us directly

Statistics and government response factors available on each country profile include:

Pre-COVID Conditions:

Debt to GDP ratio
Infant mortality rates
Hospital beds per 1,000 people
Gini coefficients measuring inequality
Health access and quality

COVID-19 Public Health Directives:

Stay-at home orders
School-closing policy
Public-gathering restrictions
Cancellation of public events
Testing policy and rates per 1,000 people
Emergency healthcare spending per capita
Travel restrictions
Contact tracing

COVID-19 Financial Response:

Stimulus package as a share of GDP
Income support
Debt-forbearance

Public Communications:

Instances of misinformation by leadership
Limitations on press freedom, censorship

Current/Historic In-Country COVID-19 Status:

Death rates per 1 million
Case rates per 1 million