《國際衛生條例》要求各國應在24小時內部衛生緊急事件的風險，但直到2019年12月31日，中國才對世衛通報了武漢的多起不明原因肺炎病例，但中國早在數天甚至數週之前就掌握了這些個案。
The International Health Regulations require countries to report the risk of a health emergency within 24 hours. But China did not inform the World Health Organization of Wuhan‘s several cases of pneumonia, of unknown origin, until December 31, 2019, even though it likely had knowledge of these cases days or weeks earlier.
根據上海復旦大學公共衛生臨床中心張永振的說法，他在2020年1月5日就告訴中國當局，他已完成病毒的基因組定序。不過直到6天後，他在自己的網站上發布，這項消息才公諸於世。不過張永振的實驗室第二天也被關閉「整改」。連世界衛生組織也承認，張永振的發言是一項「透明」的偉大行動。但對於張永振的實驗室遭到關閉、以及他宣稱6天前就對中國當局通報病毒基因組定序，世衛顯然都保持沈默。
According to Dr. Zhang Yongzhen of the Shanghai Public Health Clinic Center, he told Chinese authorities on January 5, 2020, that he had sequenced the genome of the virus. There was no publication of this information until six days later, on January 11, 2020, when Dr. Zhang self-posted it online. The next day, Chinese authorities closed his lab for 「rectification.」 As even the World Health Organization acknowledged, Dr. Zhang‘s posting was a great act of 「transparency.」 But the World Health Organization has been conspicuously silent both with respect to the closure of Dr. Zhang’s lab and his assertion that he had notified Chinese authorities of his breakthrough six days earlier.
