Inside Story

Is China losing control of the coronavirus outbreak?

Some Communist Party leaders have been sacked as the number of confirmed cases rises.

China’s President Xi Jinping has admitted shortfalls in the response to the coronavirus outbreak and promised to fix problems and loopholes in the health system.

The epicentre of the outbreak, Hubei province, reported a sharp increase in new cases.

But the World Health Organization says that is because doctors are using a broader definition to diagnose the infected.

Hubei’s Communist Party chief is among four local leaders to be sacked for mismanaging the response. Is a change of strategy needed?

Presenter: Nick Clark

Guests:

John Nicholls – Professor in pathology, University of Hong Kong and flu expert

Peter Drobac – Director of the University of Oxford’s Skoll Centre for Social Entrepreneurship

Xun Zhou – Reader in Modern History at the University of Essex who studies China’s health system