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| North Korea Claims No Coronavirus Cases. Can It Be Trusted? | North Korea Claims No Coronavirus Cases. Can It Be Trusted? |
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| SEOUL, South Korea — Shin Dong-yun, a scientist from the North Korean Institute of Virology, rushed to the northwestern border with China in early February. There, he conducted 300 tests, skipping meals to assess a stream of people so that “the country is protected from the invasion of the novel coronavirus.” | SEOUL, South Korea — Shin Dong-yun, a scientist from the North Korean Institute of Virology, rushed to the northwestern border with China in early February. There, he conducted 300 tests, skipping meals to assess a stream of people so that “the country is protected from the invasion of the novel coronavirus.” |
| Stories like this, carried in the state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun, focus attention on one of the stranger oddities surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic: How could North Korea claim to not have a single coronavirus case while countries around the world stagger under the exploding epidemic? | Stories like this, carried in the state-run newspaper Rodong Sinmun, focus attention on one of the stranger oddities surrounding the Covid-19 pandemic: How could North Korea claim to not have a single coronavirus case while countries around the world stagger under the exploding epidemic? |
| North Korea has taken some of the most drastic actions against the virus and did so sooner than most other nations. It sealed its borders in late January, shutting off business with neighboring China, which accounts for nine-tenths of its external trade. It clamped down on the smugglers who keep its thriving unofficial markets functioning. It quarantined all diplomats in Pyongyang for a month. The totalitarian state’s singular ability to control the movement of people also bolsters its disease-control efforts. | North Korea has taken some of the most drastic actions against the virus and did so sooner than most other nations. It sealed its borders in late January, shutting off business with neighboring China, which accounts for nine-tenths of its external trade. It clamped down on the smugglers who keep its thriving unofficial markets functioning. It quarantined all diplomats in Pyongyang for a month. The totalitarian state’s singular ability to control the movement of people also bolsters its disease-control efforts. |
| But decades of isolation and international sanctions have ravaged North Korea’s public health system, raising concerns that it lacks the medical supplies to fight an outbreak, which many fear has already occurred. | But decades of isolation and international sanctions have ravaged North Korea’s public health system, raising concerns that it lacks the medical supplies to fight an outbreak, which many fear has already occurred. |
| “You can see immediately what’s going to happen if you get a surge of Covid-19 patients streaming in,” said Dr. Kee B. Park, a lecturer at Harvard Medical School who has worked alongside North Korean doctors to help improve the country’s health system. “It will overwhelm the system very quickly.” | “You can see immediately what’s going to happen if you get a surge of Covid-19 patients streaming in,” said Dr. Kee B. Park, a lecturer at Harvard Medical School who has worked alongside North Korean doctors to help improve the country’s health system. “It will overwhelm the system very quickly.” |
| Many observers of North Korea doubt its claims of not having any coronavirus cases. But a lack of testing equipment may mean it literally has not detected a single case, Dr. Park said. | Many observers of North Korea doubt its claims of not having any coronavirus cases. But a lack of testing equipment may mean it literally has not detected a single case, Dr. Park said. |
| ”It’s because they may have cases but they just don’t know how to detect it,” he said. “So they can say, ‘We have not confirmed it.’” | ”It’s because they may have cases but they just don’t know how to detect it,” he said. “So they can say, ‘We have not confirmed it.’” |
| Some accuse North Korea of hiding an outbreak to preserve order. | Some accuse North Korea of hiding an outbreak to preserve order. |
| “It’s a blatant lie when they say they have no cases,” said Seo Jae-pyoung, secretary-general of the Seoul-based Association of North Korean Defectors, who said he heard from his North Korean contact that a family of three and an elderly couple died of the virus in the east coast city of Chongjin in mid-March. “The last thing the North wants is a social chaos that may erupt when North Koreans realize that people are dying of an epidemic with no cure.” | “It’s a blatant lie when they say they have no cases,” said Seo Jae-pyoung, secretary-general of the Seoul-based Association of North Korean Defectors, who said he heard from his North Korean contact that a family of three and an elderly couple died of the virus in the east coast city of Chongjin in mid-March. “The last thing the North wants is a social chaos that may erupt when North Koreans realize that people are dying of an epidemic with no cure.” |
| The North’s leader, Kim Jong-un, is clearly aware of the threat the virus poses to his country’s decrepit health system. Around when Washington announced on Feb. 13 that it would allow coronavirus-related humanitarian shipments, North Korea made a rare request for urgent help from relief groups, including diagnostic kits, according to people familiar with the matter. | The North’s leader, Kim Jong-un, is clearly aware of the threat the virus poses to his country’s decrepit health system. Around when Washington announced on Feb. 13 that it would allow coronavirus-related humanitarian shipments, North Korea made a rare request for urgent help from relief groups, including diagnostic kits, according to people familiar with the matter. |
| In recent weeks, the North’s official media outlets have carried alarming reports detailing the coronavirus’s toll around the world: a snowballing caseload in South Korea; bodies piling up in Italy; “panicked citizens” hoarding “guns and ammunition” in the United States. | In recent weeks, the North’s official media outlets have carried alarming reports detailing the coronavirus’s toll around the world: a snowballing caseload in South Korea; bodies piling up in Italy; “panicked citizens” hoarding “guns and ammunition” in the United States. |
| They contrast such reports with pictures of North Korean disease-control officials in full protective gear spraying disinfectant in buses, trams, playgrounds and hotel gyms in Pyongyang, the showcase capital city. Garment factories are shown making masks instead of clothes. There is a national drive to send eggs, meat and fish to those under quarantine. | They contrast such reports with pictures of North Korean disease-control officials in full protective gear spraying disinfectant in buses, trams, playgrounds and hotel gyms in Pyongyang, the showcase capital city. Garment factories are shown making masks instead of clothes. There is a national drive to send eggs, meat and fish to those under quarantine. |
| By its own account, North Korea has quarantined 10,000 people. International disease-control officials “have all been amazed” how North Korea could have done it, the state-run Rodong newspaper said this month. | By its own account, North Korea has quarantined 10,000 people. International disease-control officials “have all been amazed” how North Korea could have done it, the state-run Rodong newspaper said this month. |
| But video clips shot in Hyesan, a town on the North’s central border with China, in February and early March depict a far less flattering picture of the North’s disease-control efforts. | But video clips shot in Hyesan, a town on the North’s central border with China, in February and early March depict a far less flattering picture of the North’s disease-control efforts. |
| A red wooden marker on a sidewalk covered with a dirty slush of ice said “disinfection station,” according to a clip, which was smuggled to the Rev. Kim Seung-eun, a human rights activist in South Korea, and viewed by The New York Times. A lone official in a green plastic suit with a tank of disinfecting liquid on his back stood idly. A silver van raced through the town blaring the importance of wearing masks. In another clip, a sign saying “Quarantined” was stuck on the door of what looked like a tenement house where Reverend Kim said people with possible symptoms were kept. | A red wooden marker on a sidewalk covered with a dirty slush of ice said “disinfection station,” according to a clip, which was smuggled to the Rev. Kim Seung-eun, a human rights activist in South Korea, and viewed by The New York Times. A lone official in a green plastic suit with a tank of disinfecting liquid on his back stood idly. A silver van raced through the town blaring the importance of wearing masks. In another clip, a sign saying “Quarantined” was stuck on the door of what looked like a tenement house where Reverend Kim said people with possible symptoms were kept. |
| Reverend Kim said one of his North Korean contacts had been unable to return home for a month after visiting another town because the government controlled internal movement. Such restrictions were needed for disease control because of North Korea’s crowded public transportation network. | Reverend Kim said one of his North Korean contacts had been unable to return home for a month after visiting another town because the government controlled internal movement. Such restrictions were needed for disease control because of North Korea’s crowded public transportation network. |
| The country’s information blackout and the inability of outside health experts to get into the country leave the rest of the world largely in the dark about how North Korea is coping with the virus. | The country’s information blackout and the inability of outside health experts to get into the country leave the rest of the world largely in the dark about how North Korea is coping with the virus. |
| Last month, Daily NK, a Seoul-based website that hires anonymous informants inside the North, reported the deaths of 200 soldiers, as well as 23 others, who were suspected of contracting the coronavirus. But Kang Mi-jin, a North Korean defector-turned journalist in Seoul, said that no matter how hard they searched, her contacts in the North could not find a death officially ascribed to the coronavirus. | Last month, Daily NK, a Seoul-based website that hires anonymous informants inside the North, reported the deaths of 200 soldiers, as well as 23 others, who were suspected of contracting the coronavirus. But Kang Mi-jin, a North Korean defector-turned journalist in Seoul, said that no matter how hard they searched, her contacts in the North could not find a death officially ascribed to the coronavirus. |
| Updated June 30, 2020 | |
| Common symptoms include fever, a dry cough, fatigue and difficulty breathing or shortness of breath. Some of these symptoms overlap with those of the flu, making detection difficult, but runny noses and stuffy sinuses are less common. The C.D.C. has also added chills, muscle pain, sore throat, headache and a new loss of the sense of taste or smell as symptoms to look out for. Most people fall ill five to seven days after exposure, but symptoms may appear in as few as two days or as many as 14 days. | |
| Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles. | Scientists around the country have tried to identify everyday materials that do a good job of filtering microscopic particles. In recent tests, HEPA furnace filters scored high, as did vacuum cleaner bags, fabric similar to flannel pajamas and those of 600-count pillowcases. Other materials tested included layered coffee filters and scarves and bandannas. These scored lower, but still captured a small percentage of particles. |
| A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico. | A commentary published this month on the website of the British Journal of Sports Medicine points out that covering your face during exercise “comes with issues of potential breathing restriction and discomfort” and requires “balancing benefits versus possible adverse events.” Masks do alter exercise, says Cedric X. Bryant, the president and chief science officer of the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit organization that funds exercise research and certifies fitness professionals. “In my personal experience,” he says, “heart rates are higher at the same relative intensity when you wear a mask.” Some people also could experience lightheadedness during familiar workouts while masked, says Len Kravitz, a professor of exercise science at the University of New Mexico. |
| The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth. | The steroid, dexamethasone, is the first treatment shown to reduce mortality in severely ill patients, according to scientists in Britain. The drug appears to reduce inflammation caused by the immune system, protecting the tissues. In the study, dexamethasone reduced deaths of patients on ventilators by one-third, and deaths of patients on oxygen by one-fifth. |
| The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave. | The coronavirus emergency relief package gives many American workers paid leave if they need to take time off because of the virus. It gives qualified workers two weeks of paid sick leave if they are ill, quarantined or seeking diagnosis or preventive care for coronavirus, or if they are caring for sick family members. It gives 12 weeks of paid leave to people caring for children whose schools are closed or whose child care provider is unavailable because of the coronavirus. It is the first time the United States has had widespread federally mandated paid leave, and includes people who don’t typically get such benefits, like part-time and gig economy workers. But the measure excludes at least half of private-sector workers, including those at the country’s largest employers, and gives small employers significant leeway to deny leave. |
| So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement. | So far, the evidence seems to show it does. A widely cited paper published in April suggests that people are most infectious about two days before the onset of coronavirus symptoms and estimated that 44 percent of new infections were a result of transmission from people who were not yet showing symptoms. Recently, a top expert at the World Health Organization stated that transmission of the coronavirus by people who did not have symptoms was “very rare,” but she later walked back that statement. |
| Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. | Touching contaminated objects and then infecting ourselves with the germs is not typically how the virus spreads. But it can happen. A number of studies of flu, rhinovirus, coronavirus and other microbes have shown that respiratory illnesses, including the new coronavirus, can spread by touching contaminated surfaces, particularly in places like day care centers, offices and hospitals. But a long chain of events has to happen for the disease to spread that way. The best way to protect yourself from coronavirus — whether it’s surface transmission or close human contact — is still social distancing, washing your hands, not touching your face and wearing masks. |
| A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study. | A study by European scientists is the first to document a strong statistical link between genetic variations and Covid-19, the illness caused by the coronavirus. Having Type A blood was linked to a 50 percent increase in the likelihood that a patient would need to get oxygen or to go on a ventilator, according to the new study. |
| The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. | The unemployment rate fell to 13.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on June 5, an unexpected improvement in the nation’s job market as hiring rebounded faster than economists expected. Economists had forecast the unemployment rate to increase to as much as 20 percent, after it hit 14.7 percent in April, which was the highest since the government began keeping official statistics after World War II. But the unemployment rate dipped instead, with employers adding 2.5 million jobs, after more than 20 million jobs were lost in April. |
| If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) | If air travel is unavoidable, there are some steps you can take to protect yourself. Most important: Wash your hands often, and stop touching your face. If possible, choose a window seat. A study from Emory University found that during flu season, the safest place to sit on a plane is by a window, as people sitting in window seats had less contact with potentially sick people. Disinfect hard surfaces. When you get to your seat and your hands are clean, use disinfecting wipes to clean the hard surfaces at your seat like the head and arm rest, the seatbelt buckle, the remote, screen, seat back pocket and the tray table. If the seat is hard and nonporous or leather or pleather, you can wipe that down, too. (Using wipes on upholstered seats could lead to a wet seat and spreading of germs rather than killing them.) |
| If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. | If you’ve been exposed to the coronavirus or think you have, and have a fever or symptoms like a cough or difficulty breathing, call a doctor. They should give you advice on whether you should be tested, how to get tested, and how to seek medical treatment without potentially infecting or exposing others. |
| In the past, the country has hushed or played down epidemics, military rebellions, man-made disasters or anything else that could undermine the people’s faith in the government. | In the past, the country has hushed or played down epidemics, military rebellions, man-made disasters or anything else that could undermine the people’s faith in the government. |
| But this time, the North’s unusually aggressive moves, as well as its unique ability to detain people, may have prevented a devastating outbreak, said Jung Gwang-il, a North Korean defector who leads No Chain, a North Korean human rights activist group in Seoul. As soon as an outbreak was reported in China, North Korea rounded up all Chinese visitors in its northeastern town of Rason and quarantined them on an island for a month, Mr. Jung said. | But this time, the North’s unusually aggressive moves, as well as its unique ability to detain people, may have prevented a devastating outbreak, said Jung Gwang-il, a North Korean defector who leads No Chain, a North Korean human rights activist group in Seoul. As soon as an outbreak was reported in China, North Korea rounded up all Chinese visitors in its northeastern town of Rason and quarantined them on an island for a month, Mr. Jung said. |
| “It’s safe to say that there are cases in North Korea, but I don’t think the outbreak there is as large as the ones we have seen in South Korea, Italy and the U.S.,” said Ahn Kyung-su, the head of the Seoul-based Research Center of DPRK Health and Welfare, which monitors the North’s health system. “North Koreans are trained to obey government orders in a shipshape way during crises. But there is the risk of the virus running out of control if it starts spreading among its malnourished people.” | “It’s safe to say that there are cases in North Korea, but I don’t think the outbreak there is as large as the ones we have seen in South Korea, Italy and the U.S.,” said Ahn Kyung-su, the head of the Seoul-based Research Center of DPRK Health and Welfare, which monitors the North’s health system. “North Koreans are trained to obey government orders in a shipshape way during crises. But there is the risk of the virus running out of control if it starts spreading among its malnourished people.” |
| Mr. Ahn said testing kits from China were available in big cities like Pyongyang. Telltale evidence came when Kim Jong-un inspected a missile test this month and military officers surrounding him did not wear masks, which Mr. Ahn said would not have happened had they not tested negative. | Mr. Ahn said testing kits from China were available in big cities like Pyongyang. Telltale evidence came when Kim Jong-un inspected a missile test this month and military officers surrounding him did not wear masks, which Mr. Ahn said would not have happened had they not tested negative. |
| But the coronavirus has put Mr. Kim between a rock and a hard place, analysts say. | But the coronavirus has put Mr. Kim between a rock and a hard place, analysts say. |
| On March 17, he broke ground on a modern “Pyongyang General Hospital” to be completed by October. But such projects in the North rely on mass mobilizations of soldiers who sleep and eat together for months at a stretch, and raise the risk of mass infections during an epidemic. | On March 17, he broke ground on a modern “Pyongyang General Hospital” to be completed by October. But such projects in the North rely on mass mobilizations of soldiers who sleep and eat together for months at a stretch, and raise the risk of mass infections during an epidemic. |
| By this month, some help began reaching North Korea in its efforts to confront the virus. Russia donated 1,500 test kits. China is also believed to have sent diagnostic tools. The United Nations has begun waiving sanctions for aid groups like the Red Cross to ship testing machines and diagnostic kits, as well as ventilators and protective equipment. But the shipments have been slow. | By this month, some help began reaching North Korea in its efforts to confront the virus. Russia donated 1,500 test kits. China is also believed to have sent diagnostic tools. The United Nations has begun waiving sanctions for aid groups like the Red Cross to ship testing machines and diagnostic kits, as well as ventilators and protective equipment. But the shipments have been slow. |
| “Given the global shortage of supplies and items being available in different locations, we are still in the process of procuring the items,” said Ellie Van Baaren, a Red Cross spokeswoman. | “Given the global shortage of supplies and items being available in different locations, we are still in the process of procuring the items,” said Ellie Van Baaren, a Red Cross spokeswoman. |