Is it possible that India is underreporting its COVID-19 cases?
I thought they would've had many more cases.
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Answers ( 1 )
What would be most reasonable to say is that no country's numbers are accurate, and hat likely the number of cases are being under-reported worldwide. For a variety of reasons, including lack of testing; some places may be lowering their numbers for specific purpose. The US is a good example of that - the current Administration took control away from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in order to mitigate the public's perception of the seriousness of the virus. The current president has specifically stated his intent to play down the severity of the virus. The simple truth is that there is no simple truth, no way of knowing what true numbers are.
The reporting of cases is to aid understanding of the spread of the virus, how infectious it is, how it mutates, where it is infecting people, and to analyze and interpret the virus and to seek ways to curtail the spread. That data, and patient medical records, provides information that is invaluable to understanding the sickness and how it affects people.
Are some cases under-reported? Yes. Are some countries under-reporting? Yes. But there's no way to prove anything. If people aren't tested, that's one way to reduce numbers - falsifying numbers by not testing. You can't count heads when no tests are being given. And another is to question the validity of testing, and therefore eliminating cases which may be otherwise included. Numbers can be manipulated and controlled. Are they? I dare say they are. But to what extent cannot be known.