At a time when the world has learnt to live with Covid, WHO chief Dr Tedros Ghebreyesus on Thursday warned against dropping guards saying it does not mean that “we pretend it’s not there”. In a video message posted on Twitter, the WHO chief said, “15,000 people around the world lost their lives to Covid. 15,000 a week is completely unacceptable when we have all the tools to prevent infections and save lives.”
“It means we use all the tools we have to protect ourselves, and protect others,” he added.
Globally, Covid deaths have increased by 35 per cent in the last one month, he shared in the latest briefing on coronavirus. “We’re all tired of this virus, and tired of the pandemic. But the virus is not tired of us,” he stated.
Omicron remains the dominant variant and, in the last one month BA.5 sub-variant represented more than 90 per cent of sequences.
"People spending more time indoors, the risks for more intense transmission and hospitalization will only increase in the coming months - not only for COVID19, but for other diseases including influenza," the WHO chief informed.
“None of us is helpless. Please get vaccinated if you’re not, and get a booster (dose) if you need it. Wear mask and maintain social distancing,” appeals the WHO chief in the video.
“We cannot live (with the virus) with 15,000 deaths a week. We cannot live with mounting hospitalisations. We can’t live with inequitable access of vaccines,” said the global health body chief.
More than 59 crore cases have been reported since the start of the pandemic and over 64 lakh deaths. The United States has reported maxiumum cases (over 9.3 crore), followed by India (around 4.4 crore).
The WHO has on multiple instances spoken of unequal distribution of vaccines as the virus continues to mutate.