The coronavirus remains a global physical emergency, the head of the World Health Organization said Monday, after a key advisory organization found the pandemic could be reaching a “tipping point” where higher degrees of immunity can cause virus-related deaths.
Speaking at the opening of the annual assembly of the UN agency’s board of directors, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said “there is no doubt that we are on a much bigger stage now” than a year ago, when the highly transmissible variant of Omicron was at its peak.
But Tedros warned that in the past eight weeks, at least another 170,000 people have died worldwide from the coronavirus. He called for full vaccination of risk groups, more testing and early use of antivirals, expansion of laboratory networks and a fight. opposed to “misinformation” about the pandemic.
“We are 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,” he said.
Tedros’ comments came moments after the WHO released the findings of its emergency committee on the pandemic, which reported that some 13. 1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines were administered, with only about 90% of fitness staff and more than 4 in another five. People over 60 who have finished the first set of strokes.
“The committee identified that the COVID-19 pandemic may be reaching a tipping point,” the WHO said in a statement. Higher levels of international immunity through vaccination or infection “could restrict the impact” of the virus that causes COVID-19. on “morbidity and mortality,” the committee said.
“[But] there is no doubt that this virus will remain a permanently established pathogen in humans and animals for the foreseeable future,” he said. While versions of Omicron spread easily, “there has been a dissociation between infection and severe disease” for past variants.
Committee members cited “pandemic fatigue” and the growing public belief that COVID-19 is no longer as risky as it once was, leading others to forget or forget about fitness measures, such as wearing a mask and physical distancing.
On Monday, following the WHO’s announcement, officials at the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) said the company would continue to work with provinces and territories to implement a “long-term sustainable technique for the ongoing control of COVID-19. “. “
This includes ongoing monitoring and normal public updates as new data becomes available, according to a statement from the federal agency.
“There is a physically powerful laboratory surveillance program in the provinces and territories to identify SARS-CoV-2 variants in Canada, adding variants of the Omicron lineage of interest, such as XBB. 1. 5,” the PHAC added.
“As COVID-19 activity continues and hospitalizations remain the highest in Canada, layers of prevention, in addition to keeping COVID-19 vaccines and private protective practices up to date, remain our method to reduce the risk of severe illness and limit the burden on the healthcare system. “
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