The World Health Organization has warned that the Covid-19 pandemic is far from over, as France, Germany, and Brazil posted new records of infections in the past 24 hours.
The intervention comes as some European nations saw record new case numbers. The highly transmissible omicron strain has spread unabated around the world, pushing some governments to impose fresh measures while speeding up the rollout of vaccine booster shots.
Speaking to reporters from the agency headquarters in Geneva on Tuesday, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “This pandemic is nowhere near over.”
Ghebreyesus warned against dismissing omicron as mild, as the dominant Covid strain continues to flare new outbreaks from Latin America to East Asia after it was first detected in southern Africa in November.
“omicron may be less severe, on average, but the narrative that it is a mild disease is misleading,” he said.
He warned global leaders that “with the incredible growth of Omicron globally, new variants are likely to emerge, which is why tracking and assessment remain critical".
Europe is at the epicenter of alarming new outbreaks, with Germany’s cases soaring past 100,000 and France reporting nearly half a million cases on Tuesday. Five million cases were reported in Europe last week and the WHO has predicted omicron could infect half of all Europeans by March, filling hospitals across the continent.
Meanwhile, the WHO’s emergencies director, Dr. Mike Ryan, also warned that Omicron’s increased transmissibility is likely to drive a rise in hospitalizations and deaths, especially in nations where fewer people are vaccinated.
“An exponential rise in cases, regardless of the severity of the individual variants, leads to an inevitable increase in hospitalizations and deaths,” he said.
The intervention comes as some European nations saw record new case numbers. The highly transmissible omicron strain has spread unabated around the world, pushing some governments to impose fresh measures while speeding up the rollout of vaccine booster shots.
Speaking to reporters from the agency headquarters in Geneva on Tuesday, WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said, “This pandemic is nowhere near over.”
Ghebreyesus warned against dismissing omicron as mild, as the dominant Covid strain continues to flare new outbreaks from Latin America to East Asia after it was first detected in southern Africa in November.
“omicron may be less severe, on average, but the narrative that it is a mild disease is misleading,” he said.
He warned global leaders that “with the incredible growth of Omicron globally, new variants are likely to emerge, which is why tracking and assessment remain critical".
Europe is at the epicenter of alarming new outbreaks, with Germany’s cases soaring past 100,000 and France reporting nearly half a million cases on Tuesday. Five million cases were reported in Europe last week and the WHO has predicted omicron could infect half of all Europeans by March, filling hospitals across the continent.
Meanwhile, the WHO’s emergencies director, Dr. Mike Ryan, also warned that Omicron’s increased transmissibility is likely to drive a rise in hospitalizations and deaths, especially in nations where fewer people are vaccinated.
“An exponential rise in cases, regardless of the severity of the individual variants, leads to an inevitable increase in hospitalizations and deaths,” he said.
