WHO Director General: COVID-19 Omicron Has Spread To 23 Countries

JAKARTA – The Omicron COVID-19 mutation, which was first detected in South Africa, has reportedly spread to various countries in the world. The World Health Organization (WHO) reports that cases of Omicron have been detected in 23 countries. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus predicts the Omicron COVID-19 case will increase.

"At least 23 countries from five of the WHO's six regions have now reported cases of omicron and we expect that number to continue to grow," Ghebreyesus said as quoted by CNBC International.

“WHO takes these developments very seriously and so does every country. But that shouldn't surprise us. This is what viruses do. And that's what this virus will continue to do, as long as we allow it to continue to spread."

Recently, the first case of omicron in the United States has appeared in California. The information was confirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Wednesday. A person who has been vaccinated and returned from South Africa to San Francisco on November 22 has tested positive on November 29. This was conveyed by the chief medical adviser at the White House, Dr. Anthony Fauci.

WHO states that COVID-19 omicron attacks protective antibodies and has a higher spread rate. However, Ghebreyesus explained that his party was still studying the effects of the transmission of the new variant, the severity of the disease, the effectiveness of tests, therapies, and vaccines.

He also said a number of WHO advisory boards had met to "evaluate emerging evidence, and prioritize the studies needed to answer these questions."

The WHO director-general added that the highly contagious delta variant of COVID-19 still accounts for nearly all cases globally. Tedros said using available tools to prevent delta transmissions would also stop omicron transmissions.

"If countries and individuals don't do what they have to do to stop delta transmission, they won't stop omicron either," Tedros said.

The WHO Director-General also urged countries to increase vaccinations and a number of other precautions. Ghebreyesus explained that the vaccine's reach and low testing in countries are "a recipe for breeding and strengthening variants."

"We continue to urge countries to fully fund accelerators to ensure equitable access to vaccines, therapeutic tests, worldwide," Tedros said.

He assessed that travel restrictions imposed by a number of countries would not prevent the transmission of omicron and become a "heavy burden on lives and livelihoods."

Various countries have restricted travel to a number of countries in South Africa since the omicron COVID-19 mutation surfaced. The US itself has closed access from South Africa. This is intended to prevent omicron from spreading there.

Touching on the travel restrictions imposed by various countries, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that Botswana and South Africa were "punished by others for doing the right thing." The WHO Director-General asked countries to take rational actions such as screening passengers before leaving and when they come to a country and implementing quarantines for foreign tourists.

The statement by the Director-General of WHO was strongly responded by the White House medical adviser, Dr. Fauci. Fauci assessed that the restrictions were implemented to delay the spread of Omicron so that they are ready to face and understand the Omicron COVID-19 mutation.

“No one felt that a travel ban would prevent infected people from coming to the United States. But we need to buy time to be able to prepare, understand what is happening. So we see this as a temporary measure,” said Dr. Fauci.