Table 1 The extent of the spread of the virus and timeline of National responses

 China

27 December 2019, first notification to the local center for disease control and prevention (CDC) and health commissions; end of December 2019, suspension of passenger trains to and from Wuhan; 1 January, seafood market closure; 20 January, the NHC started publishing daily data on confirmed and suspected cases; 21 January, government officials warned against hiding the disease; 22 January, Hubei announced a Class 2 Response to Public Health Emergency; 23 January, Wuhan declared lockdown and the province of Zhejiang announced Class 1 Response to Public Health Emergency; 26 January, the State Council extended the 2020 Spring Festival holiday; 27 January, MoE advised all higher education institutions to postpone the new spring semester; 3 February, local governments and companies across the nation encouraged remote working (home office); 7 February, the Chinese Ministry of Education shared instructions for conducting online teaching for students; 7 April, the end of Wuhan lockdown was declared

1,439,323,776

84,458

 South Korea

20 January, first notification; 4 February, denying entry to foreigners traveling from Hubei Province; 18 February, most universities in South Korea postponed the start of the spring semester; 23 February, all kindergartens, elementary schools, middle schools, and high schools were announced to delay the semester start; 25 February, Daegu officials were aggressively warning residents to take precautions, while allowing private businesses such as restaurants to stay open

51,269,185

12,257

 Italy

23 January, first notification; 31 January, flights to and from China suspended and state of emergency declared; 20 February, patient tested positive in Lombardy; 21 February, two people tested positive in Veneto; 22 February, lockdown of 11 municipalities in Lombardy and Veneto (red zone); 1 March, the Italian national territory was divided into three areas (red zone with whole population in quarantine; yellow zone, social and sport events suspended and schools, theaters, clubs and cinemas are closed; rest of the national territory, where safety and prevention measures are advertised in public places); 4 March, shutdown of all schools and universities nationwide; 8 March, lockdown to all of Lombardy and 14 other northern provinces and on the following day to all of Italy; 11 March, all commercial activities except for supermarkets and pharmacies were closed; 21 March, the Italian government closed all non-essential businesses and industries and restricted movement of people; 26 April, movements across regions are still forbidden, while the ones between municipalities are allowed only for work and health reasons, as well as for visits to relatives; reopening of manufacturing industries and construction sites is allowed; 18 May, most businesses could reopen, and free movement was granted to all citizens within their Region

60,465,149

237,828

 Spain

31 January, first notification; 14 March, lockdown was imposed; 17 March, a national state of emergency was declared, mobilizing the army and ordering the closure of schools and universities, shops, bars and restaurants, and any place open to the public. Citizens’ movements are allowed only to go to work and to treatment centers or the doctor or to purchase basic necessities, such as food and medicine. All the hospitals and private healthcare facilities in the country were placed under the direct control of the regional public health authorities

46,754,778

244,683

 France

24 January, first notification; 16 March, the beginning of a lockdown period was announced and all schools and all universities were closed; 17 March, ban on all travel except relating to professional activity, buying essential goods, health or family reasons or brief individual exercise, closure of all non-essential public places, including restaurants, cafés, cinemas, and nightclubs; 17 March, the Direction générale de la Santé (DGS) asked Santé publique France to buy urgently 1.1 million of FFP2 masks; 11 May–1 June, phase 1 of lockdown lifting; 2 June, phase 2 of lockdown lifting

65,267,844

194,805

 Germany

27 January, first notification; 13 March, school and kindergarten closures, postponing academic semesters and prohibiting visits to nursing homes to protect the elderly; 15 March, borders to five neighboring countries were closed; 22 March, prohibited physical contact with more than one person who resides outside of a household, curfews were imposed in six German states while other states instead opting for strict social distancing measures

83,783,942

188,604

 UK

31 January, first notification; 3 March, the UK Government unveiled their Coronavirus Action Plan; 12 March, the government announced it was moving out of the contain phase and into the delay phase of the response to the coronavirus outbreak; 17 March, NHS England announced that all non-urgent operations in England would be postponed from 15 April to free up 30,000 beds; 26 March, the Health Protection (Coronavirus, Restrictions) (England) Regulations 2020 made the sweeping restrictions (national lockdown) legally enforceable; 4 April, Johnson was admitted to Hospital, 12 April, left the hospital; April, shortage of chemical reagents needed for COVID-19 testing; 10 May, Prime Minister Johnson asked those who could not work from home to go to work, avoiding public transport if possible

67,886,011

300,717

 Russia

30 January, Chinese–Russian border was shut; 31 January, first notification; 17 March, closing all cultural institutions under its jurisdiction, including museums, theaters, symphonies, and circuses; 23 March, all Russian schools were closed; 24 March, instruction to regional authorities to suspend activities of any nightclubs, cinemas, and children’s entertainment centers and to ban hookah smoking at any restaurants or cafes; 25 March, the 2020 Russian constitutional referendum was postponed; 27 March, international flights were grounded; 28 March, all universities were closed; 30 March, lockdown started; 11 April, Moscow’s mayor introduced a digital pass system to enforce the coronavirus lockdown; 11 May, end of the national non-working period

145,934,462

552,549

 Israel

21 February, first notification; 11 March, Israel limited gatherings to 100 people; 12 March, all universities and schools were closed; 17 March, a Knesset committee approved the contact-tracing program

8,655,535

19,894

 Iran

24 February, first notification; 25 February, declared lockdown procedures

83,992,949

195,051

 Tunisia

2 March, first notification; 12 March, schools and all universities were closed; 18 March, curfew from 6 p.m. to 6 a.m.; 23 March, general confinement

11,818,619

1128

 Egypt

14 February, first notification; 19 March, restaurants, cafes, nightclubs, and public places throughout the country were closed from seven in the evening until six in the morning, decision to close the airports and suspended all air travel; 21 March, decision was made to suspend prayers in all of Egypt’s mosque, the Coptic Orthodox Church also announced the closure of all churches and the suspension of ritual services, masses, and activities

102,334,404

49,219

 Yemen

10 April, first notification

29,825,964

902

 Nigeria

27 February, first notification; 19 March, Federal government announced the closure of tertiary institutions, secondary and primary schools; Anambra State government announced the closure of their schools and suspension of public gatherings indefinitely, tertiary institutions to close from 20 March, while primary and secondary schools to close from 27 March, Ogun State government extended an earlier ban to schools and religious centers in the state indefinitely; 21 March, Nigeria announced the closure of their international airports, Enugu, Port Harcourt, and Kano airports; 1 June, the federal government announced the reopening of domestic airline operations from 21 June and shortened the curfew from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m.

206,139,589

17,735

 South Africa

5 March, first confirmed case; 15 March, declaration of a national state of disaster; 26 March, national lockdown started; 1 May, a gradual and phased easing of the lockdown restrictions started, lowering the national alert level to 4, to be lowered to level 3 from 1 June

59,308,690

80,412

 Mozambique

22 March, first notification

31,255,435

651

 U.S.

20 January, first notification; 29 January, the White House Coronavirus Task Force was established; 31 January, public health emergency was declared; 2 February, prevent the entry of most foreign nationals who had recently traveled to China; 29 February, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) began allowing public health agencies, hospitals, and private companies to develop tests and perform testing; 5 March, the CDC relax the criteria to allow doctors discretion to decide who would be eligible for tests; 13 March, national emergency was declared; State and local responses to the outbreak were different including prohibitions and cancelation of large-scale gatherings (including festivals and sporting events), stay-at-home orders, and the closure of schools; 19 March, the State Department suspended routine visa services at all American embassies and consulates worldwide

331,002,651

2,163,290

 Brazil

28 January, the Ministry of Health in Brazil raised the emergency alert to level 2 of 3, considering an “imminent threat” for Brazil; 3 February, the Minister of Health declared a Public Health Emergency of International Concern; 25 February, first notification in Brazil; 21 March, the State of São Paulo declared a state-wide quarantine; 7 May, cities in the northern states of Amazonas and Pará begun issuing lockdown measures; 9 May, the government of Rio Grande do Sul established a new social distancing plan.

212,559,417

955,377

 Ecuador

29 February, first notification; 14 March, the government announced the closure of its borders; 24 March, police moved to dismantle open markets; early April, the health system in Guayas Province was overwhelmed

17,643,054