The new coronavirus variant of concern is spreading at an unprecedented rate, the World Health Organization has warned, saying 'the reality is that Omicron is probably in most countries, even if it hasn't been detected yet'.
WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus says"the reality is that Omicron is probably in most countries, even if it hasn't been detected yet".The new coronavirus variant Omicron is spreading at an unprecedented rate, the World Health Organization has warned, urging countries to act swiftly to rein in transmission and protect their health systems.
The warnings came amid growing evidence that the new variant might be better at skirting vaccine protections than previous ones.A study published by Pfizer Tuesday showed that two doses of its COVID jabs offer around 70 per cent protection against severe disease from Omicron, compared to 93 per cent against earlier variants.'Very dangerous situation'
Dr Tedros also cautioned against "dismissing Omicron as mild," pointing out that even if the variant does cause less severe disease, the sheer number of cases could once again overwhelm unprepared health systems." Those cases "may or may not be less severe, but ... will in themselves generate pressure on the health system," he said, insisting on the need to "reduce that pressure."As countries scramble to deal with Omicron, Dr Tedros voiced concern that many were rolling out booster vaccine doses to the general population, warning that this could deepen inequity in vaccine access between wealthy and poorer countries.
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