The Omicron Variant Considered Mild, WHO: Misleading, Because It Causes Hospitalization And Death, The Pandemic Is Not Over Yet

JAKARTA - The COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Tuesday, warning against the narrative of the risk-free, fast-spreading variant of the Omicron variant.

"This pandemic is not over," said Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters from WHO headquarters in Geneva, citing the Times Of Israel from AF, January 19.

Dr. Tedros warned against taking lightly the Omicron variant of the coronavirus, which has spread like wildfire around the world since it was first detected in southern Africa in November last year.

The Omicron variant of COVID-19 is much more contagious than the previous strain, but appears to cause less serious illness. That has sparked debate about the virus going from pandemic to endemic, with the implication that the danger will pass.

However, the WHO has warned the large number of people infected will mean many vulnerable people are still seriously ill and dying.

"Omicron may be less severe, on average, but the narrative that it is a mild disease is misleading," Dr. Tedros.

"Make no mistake, the Omicron variant causes hospitalization and death, and even less severe cases are flooding health facilities," he explained.

He further said that indications of the spike in COVID cases triggered by the Omicron variant may have peaked in some countries.

This, he said, "gives hope that the worst of this latest wave is over, but no country is out of the woods yet."

Dr. Tedros said there was an urgent need to relieve pressure on health systems, especially in countries that still have low vaccination coverage.

"Now is not the time to give up and fly the white flag. We can still significantly reduce the impact of the current wave by effectively sharing and using medical devices, and implementing the public health and social measures we know are working," said Dr. Tedros.

Although data shows that existing COVID vaccines are less effective in protecting against Omicron transmission than previous types. However, Dr. Tedros stressed that it remains important to ensure wider and fairer access to the punch.

"The vaccine may be less effective in preventing infection and transmission of Omicron than previous variants, but the vaccine is still very good at preventing serious illness and death," he said.

Health experts warn that allowing COVID-19 to spread relentlessly in some places dramatically increases the chances of new, more dangerous variants emerging.

"With Omicron's tremendous growth globally, new variants are likely to emerge," Dr. Tedros warned.

As new infections increased by 20 percent worldwide over the past week, with around 19 million total cases reported over a seven-day period, the WHO also warned the Omicron variant would not be the last COVID-19 variant.

"Don't leave knowledge behind. Don't ignore the current strategy, which is to keep us and our loved ones safe," said Maria Van Kerkhove, WHO's COVID technical lead.

"This will not be the last variant of concern," he added, calling on the government to invest more in surveillance systems to track the virus as it mutates and spreads.