Getting sick is an invariable ( 永恒的) part of people’s lives. But their attitudes toward being sick and hospital visits vary from country to country. This difference hasn’t been more pronounced since the start of the novel coronavirus epidemic –  when a great number of people are falling ill all at the same time.
The conditions in the US are getting worse quickly, which is largely due to the fact that there’s no universal healthcare system. According to the 2019 US Census, 28 million people are not covered or do not have adequate health insurance, meaning that they would probably avoid getting tested for the virus, for fear of the cost of being hospitalized.
“There is a strong financial incentive (动机) to conceal (隐瞒) symptoms, to try
to keep working and caring for children, and by consequence, they’re spreading the virus … simply because they have no other choice,” wrote reporter James Hamblin on
The Atlantic.
Germany, on the contrary, has one of the world’s best-developed and most expensive public healthcare systems that covers every citizen. People in Germany – who have “high levels of job security”, according to the Los Angeles Times – are also more likely to follow the quarantine measures and stay at home without having to worry about losing their jobs.v Both explain why the country seems to be   weathering
(经受) the pandemic better than its European peers.
“The conditions to deal with the virus in Germany are among the best in the world,” said German Chancellor Angela Merkel, according to the Los Angeles Times.
Japan also has universal public healthcare, but it brings another kind of problem: People tend to seek more medical care than necessary. According to Yusuke Tsugawa, a physician at Harvard University, Japan has three times more outpatient visits than in the US, and patients also stay in hospital for three times longer than in the US. This often wastes medical resources, which are even more critical and precious during a global pandemic.
“It isn’t good to do tests just to ease public anxiety,” Kentaro Iwata, an infectious
( 传 染 的 ) disease expert at Kobe University, Japan, told Reuters. “If they test everyone with light symptoms, the medical system will puncture (破损).”
Indeed, a country’s healthcare system is the key to keeping its people safe – it’s also the key to whether a country can survive a crisis like the novel coronavirus pandemic.
12.For many people in the US, what might happen if they get infected by the novel coronavirus?
A.They will lose their job right away.
B.They will be forced to go through a series of tests.
C.They will have to pay for treatment on their own.
D.They will find it hard to get hospital care due to their insurance policy.
13.What can we learn from the text about the fight against COVID-19 in Germany?
A.Germany’s good healthcare system makes it easier to win the fight.
B.There is a growing concern over unemployment due to the pandemic.
C.Germany has taken the strictest quarantine measures in Europe.
D.Angela Merkel expressed pressure while fighting against the virus.
14.What might Yusuke Tsugawa agree with in the fight against the pandemic?
A.All those showing symptoms should be tested.
B.A shortage of medical resources has presented a big challenge for Japan.
C.Japanese hospitals haven’t dealt with their medical waste properly.
D.Some Japanese people take advantage of their public healthcare system.
15.What is this text mainly about?
A.How the universal healthcare system works in different countries.
B.Why people in different countries respond differently during the pandemic.
C.How the novel coronavirus has affected healthcare systems across the world.
D.What measures have been taken to fight the novel coronavirus worldwide.

12 C

13 A

14 D

15 B