The UN health agency is concerned that people may have the perception that it is milder, which is still unknown. But even if it were, it has the capacity to overwhelm health systems. Concern increases as Christmas and New Year’s Eve approach, popular holidays that encourage family gatherings and travel.
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The omicron variant of the coronavirus is spreading “at a pace we have not seen in any of the previous strains,” and is probably already in almost every country in the world, the World Health Organization warned today.
“Already 77 countries have reported cases of Omicron, and the reality is that Omicron is probably in most countries, although it has not yet been detected. Omicron is spreading at a rate we haven’t seen with any previous variant. We are concerned that people are dismissing Omicron as mild,” said the Organization’s Director-General, Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus at the weekly press briefing on the status of the pandemic.
In this regard, one of the WHO specialists, Dr. Abdi Mhamud indicated that “people have the feeling that Omicron is mild, but these are preliminary data from young patients. Age is the biggest risk factor for COVID19, so we have to protect those who are most vulnerable”.
Mhamud noted that it is still unknown how the new variant behaves in older people, especially in countries with an ageing population.
The danger of Christmas
His colleague, Dr. Ana Maria Henao Restrepo, pointed out that even if “omicron does not cause a more serious disease than delta, as it is causing a large number of cases, health systems, if they are not well prepared, maybe overwhelmed”.
For his part, Dr. Bruce Aylward, an advisor to the World Health Organization, expressed the concern of his officials with the arrival of a festive period characterized by family gatherings and travel.
“We are very concerned about going into Christmas with a virus that we know is highly transmissible, but about which much remains to be known and with people assuming it causes mild illness. It’s a very dangerous situation. “UN NewsWHO calls for accelerated vaccination in the face of the emergence of the omicron variant.
Be prepared, be prepared, be prepared
Against that backdrop, they all called on governments around the world to prepare for a wave of infections by ensuring that hospitals have the necessary staff, triage system and oxygen supplies.
The emergence of omicron has prompted some countries to implement booster programs for their entire adult population, even though, according to Tedros, there is no evidence on the effectiveness of boosters against this variant.
WHO is concerned that such programs will repeat the vaccine hoarding seen this year and exacerbate inequity.
“Let me be very clear: WHO is not against boosters. We are against inequity. Our primary concern is saving lives, everywhere.”
In that regard, Dr. Michael Ryan, head of the Organization’s emergency response, said, “We don’t want a vulnerable person who is offered a booster dose to feel guilty about accepting it. That’s not what this is about. It’s about governments thinking about global inequality to better protect their people.”
Her colleague Katherine O’Brien, an expert on vaccines at the Organization, explained that “if there is hoarding of vaccines, other countries cannot access them”.
For that reason, she called on manufacturers and donor countries to continue to prioritize donations to COVAX, the UN mechanism for equitable distribution of vaccines.
“We don’t want the pace of deliveries that has taken months to achieve to slow down,” O’Brien added.
Tedros commented that it’s really quite simple: “the priority in each country, and globally, must be to protect the least protected, not the most protected.”
*COVAX is part of an unprecedented global effort to provide vaccines for at least 20% of the population in each participating country during 2021 to protect those most at risk for severe forms of COVID-19 and save lives. In the Americas, 36 countries will receive vaccines through the COVAX Mechanism, 26 of which will be self-funded and ten of which will be free of charge.
The Pan American Health Organization Revolving Fund is the designated mechanism for COVAX to procure vaccines on behalf of countries in the region.
COVAX is co-led by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the World Health Organization and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), and works in partnership with UNICEF, the PAHO Revolving Fund, as well as the World Bank, civil society organizations, manufacturers and others.