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The World Health Organization on Monday renewed its declaration that the COVID-19 pandemic constitutes a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), the agency’s alert point, but said the three-year crisis could be a “tipping point,” after the virus may be downgraded to a less severe but permanent detail in the diversity of human pathogens.
On Friday, the firm convened its emergency committee for the fourteenth time to assess the state of the coronavirus pandemic. The week marked the third anniversary of PHEIC’s initial declaration of COVID-19 from the firm.
“As we enter the fourth year of the pandemic, we are in a much better position now than we were a year ago, when the wave of omicrons was at its peak and more than 70,000 deaths were reported to the WHO each week,” he said. WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus in his opening remarks at Friday’s committee meeting.
Overall, the pandemic has subsided since then. In October, weekly deaths fell to less than 10,000, the lowest level of the pandemic. But the numbers are resurging, largely due to a large wave of infections in mainland China following the country’s abrupt abandonment of its zero-COVID policy.
Last week, around 40,000 deaths were reported worldwide, more than a fraction of them in China. “In total, over the past 8 weeks, more than 170,000 deaths were reported. The real number is much higher,” Tedros said.
In total, the committee made the decision that COVID-19 “remains a harmful infectious disease capable of causing significant damage to fitness and fitness systems. “- and middle-income countries, a dramatic decline in variant surveillance, the continued spread of misinformation, vaccine hesitancy, and the long-term threat of long-term COVID. The committee also stated that “pandemic fatigue and reduced public belief of threat have led to drastic relief in the use of social and public fitness measures, such as masks and social distancing. “
Still, the committee noted that the pandemic appears to be reaching a “tipping point,” where COVID-19 will move from an acute crisis to a lower-level sustained threat. Although overall vaccination rates want to increase in many countries, 13. 1 billion doses have been used internationally, leading to higher levels of coverage in frontline and high-risk populations. Overall, 89% of international fitness staff finished a number one set, as did 81% of others over the age of 60. Higher degrees of population immunity are being established with a combination of vaccination and infection.
“There is no doubt that this virus will remain a permanently established pathogen in humans and animals for the foreseeable long term,” the WHO concluded. public fitness action. ” This means proceeding with vaccination rates, especially in the highest priority groups. It also means strengthening disease and variant surveillance, expanding acceptance of COVID-19 treatments, and preparing for long-term outbreaks.
“Although it is highly unlikely to eliminate this virus from human and animal reservoirs, mitigating its devastating effect on morbidity and mortality is feasible and deserves to remain a priority objective,” WHO said.
Overall, WHO has set the bar for a transition out of the crisis phase of the pandemic and into a new general with SARS-CoV-2. While PHEIC remains for now, the committee will meet again in 3 months to rethink the situation.
“We remain hopeful that in the coming year, the world will move into a new phase where we will reduce hospitalizations and deaths to the lowest level imaginable, and fitness systems will be able to manage COVID-19 in an integrated and sustainable way. “Tedros said. He said in comments Monday.
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