WHO Says COVID-19 Still International Health Emergency

WHO warns of COVID-19-related complications and post-COVID-19 conditions, with the full impact of these still not completely understood. The outbreak could also evolve during the upcoming winter season in the Northern Hemisphere.

COVID-19 is still a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), stated the World Health Organization (WHO).

The announcement came although the number of weekly deaths is almost at its lowest level since the pandemic began, Xinhua news agency reported.

COVID-19: Global Health Emergency

Meanwhile, the current gaps in global surveillance of COVID-19 have hindered early identification and evaluation of the virus’ evolution. With the virus expected to continue evolving, the committee said that the genetic and antigenic characteristics of future variants cannot yet be reliably predicted. Evolving variants may pose challenges to current vaccines and therapeutics, the committee warned.

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The WHO stated that deaths due to COVID-19 remained high with decreasing COVID-19 cases.

"Given the above considerations, the committee concurred that the continued coordination of the international response is necessary," and considered that "the situation remains dynamic and requires frequent reassessments, and that the termination of the PHEIC, when considered feasible, should be implemented as safely as possible."

The committee recommended that there should be three key priorities in the future: strengthening surveillance and achieving vaccination targets for at risk-groups; continuing to increase access to affordable therapeutics; and strengthening pandemic preparedness planning, while continuing to protect the most at-risk groups.

Source-IANS

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