to call the us a 'failed state' presumes this is not them fulfilling their function
the one characteristic of the state is its monopoly on legitimatised violence; and the purpose of exercising that monopoly is the maintenence of class antagonism, of the extractive structures of capitalism and colonialism. everything else is accessory to that. when the government tells you to die for the line to go up this is the function they're fulfilling. you might say they're not doing a great job of it, but that's because the function itself is unsustainable
the point is there is no possible non-failed version of the us that would be capable of containing covid or making the justice system not be racist. to do either would go against their actual function
that eg china has been capable of containing covid simply proves that the chinese state does not have the same function — to use a theory word, it does not have the same class character as the us do