Covid-19, which claimed millions of lives around the world over the past three years, is no longer a public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC), WHO declared on Friday. The virus, instead, is now an established and ongoing health issue, it said.
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva that the decision was taken following a recommendation from the UN agency’s emergency committee that met Thursday. He, however, cautioned it doesn’t mean the pandemic is over as a global health threat. “(Even) last week, Covid-19 claimed a life every three minutes and that’s just the deaths we know about,” Ghebreyesus said.
WHO designated Covid-19 as PHEIC – the highest level of alarm under international law – on January 30, 2020, weeks after the outbreak of SARS-CoV2 was reported from central China’s Wuhan city before it spiralled into a pandemic.
Countries must not let down Covid guard: WHO
While declaring that Covid-19 was no longer a public health emergency of international concern, WHO chief Ghebreyesus on Friday said in the past three years, the disease had turned the world upside down, reports Durgesh Nandan Jha.
“Almost seven million deaths have been reported to WHO, but we know the toll is several times higher — at least 20 million,” he said. He said for more than a year, the pandemic has been on a downward trend with population immunity increasing from vaccination and infection and mortality decreasing.
“The worst thing any country can do now is to use this news as a reason to let down its guard, to dismantle the systems it has built, or to send the message to its people that Covid is nothing to worry about,” the WHO chief said. Tedros said it was time for countries to transition from emergency mode to managing Covid-19 alongside other infectious diseases.
India reported the first case of Covid-19 on January 30, 2020. Since then, over 4.4 crore cases and over 5.3 lakh fatalities due to the disease have been confirmed. On Friday, the country reported 3,611 new cases and 27 deaths.
After WHO’s announcement, K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India, told TOI, “With the emergence of the Omicron variant and its sub-lineages, we have seen that infectivity remains high in spite of previous exposure to the disease and vaccination or both. The severity has reduced significantly and the disease isn’t causing an overwhelming of the health system.”
WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told reporters in Geneva that the decision was taken following a recommendation from the UN agency’s emergency committee that met Thursday. He, however, cautioned it doesn’t mean the pandemic is over as a global health threat. “(Even) last week, Covid-19 claimed a life every three minutes and that’s just the deaths we know about,” Ghebreyesus said.
WHO designated Covid-19 as PHEIC – the highest level of alarm under international law – on January 30, 2020, weeks after the outbreak of SARS-CoV2 was reported from central China’s Wuhan city before it spiralled into a pandemic.
Countries must not let down Covid guard: WHO
While declaring that Covid-19 was no longer a public health emergency of international concern, WHO chief Ghebreyesus on Friday said in the past three years, the disease had turned the world upside down, reports Durgesh Nandan Jha.
“Almost seven million deaths have been reported to WHO, but we know the toll is several times higher — at least 20 million,” he said. He said for more than a year, the pandemic has been on a downward trend with population immunity increasing from vaccination and infection and mortality decreasing.
“The worst thing any country can do now is to use this news as a reason to let down its guard, to dismantle the systems it has built, or to send the message to its people that Covid is nothing to worry about,” the WHO chief said. Tedros said it was time for countries to transition from emergency mode to managing Covid-19 alongside other infectious diseases.
India reported the first case of Covid-19 on January 30, 2020. Since then, over 4.4 crore cases and over 5.3 lakh fatalities due to the disease have been confirmed. On Friday, the country reported 3,611 new cases and 27 deaths.
After WHO’s announcement, K Srinath Reddy, president of the Public Health Foundation of India, told TOI, “With the emergence of the Omicron variant and its sub-lineages, we have seen that infectivity remains high in spite of previous exposure to the disease and vaccination or both. The severity has reduced significantly and the disease isn’t causing an overwhelming of the health system.”
