Covid-19: Global deaths up by 35% in a month; WHO warns against dropping guard
Virendra Pandit
New Delhi: Amid the rise in the number of Covid-19 deaths by 35 percent in a month, the World Health Organization (WHO) said on Thursday the pandemic is not over yet and warned against dropping guard.
WHO Director-General Dr. Tedros Ghebreyesus said: “15,000 people worldwide lost their lives to Covid-19. 15,000 a week is completely unacceptable when we have all the tools to prevent infections and save lives.”
In a video message, he referred to the fresh global spurt in infection cases and said nobody should pretend the pandemic has ended. “Learning to live with Covid-19 does not mean we pretend it is not there. It means we use all the tools we have to protect ourselves and protect others.”
“We’re all tired of this virus and tired of the pandemic. But the virus is not tired of us,” he remarked.
Official data suggested that Omicron remains the dominant variant and its BA.5 sub-variant represented over 90 percent of sequences.
“None of us is helpless. Please get vaccinated if you’re not, and get a booster (dose) if you need it. Wear masks and maintain social distancing. We cannot live (with the virus) with 15,000 deaths a week. We cannot live with mounting hospitalizations. We can’t live with inequitable access to vaccines,” Dr. Tedros said in a desperate appeal.
Since the beginning of the pandemic, over 590 million cases, including 6.4 million deaths, have been reported worldwide. Leading the charts is the USA with over 91 million, followed by India with around 44 million cases.
With the onset of colder weather in the next few weeks in the northern hemisphere and people spending more time indoors, the WHO warned the risks for more intense transmission and hospitalization will only increase in the coming months—not only for Covid-19 but for other diseases, including influenza.
