As of March 17 2020 , the number of global active cases ( 13.8 cases/mil ) per capita surpassed that of Wuhan , Hubei ( 9.8 cases/mil ) when the region was placed under lockdown on Jan 22 2020.The virus is primarily spread between people in a similar manner to influenza , via respiratory droplets from coughing and sneezing .
As of March 17 , 2020 , worldwide active COVID-19 cases per capita exceeded those of Wuhan , Hubei .