WHO: One million deaths from Covid-19 since the beginning of the year
The World Health Organization (WHO) confirmed that the world has reached a "tragic milestone", recording 1 million deaths from Covid-19 since the beginning of 2022.
The majority of deaths were in the US (more than 217,000), followed by Russia (72,000), Brazil (63,000) and India (45,000). Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus - Director of WHO said that countries cannot claim to be "learning to live with Covid-19" when tens of thousands of deaths still occur, despite having all the necessary tools to prevent them.
"We ask governments to ramp up vaccination of all health workers, older people and those most at risk, aiming to achieve 70% population coverage," said Mr. Tedros.
The WHO had set a target of vaccinating 70% of the global population earlier, when the pandemic was still severe. However, 136 countries failed to reach this milestone, of which 66 still had a vaccine coverage rate below 40%.
"All countries at all income levels need to take bolder action, vaccinate those at high risk of severe illness and death, ensure access to treatments, sequence genes, and put in place policies that are appropriate for each period," Mr. Tedros added.
Dr. Derrick Sim - CEO of the Gavi Vaccine Alliance, said that behind every death is "a very real human tragedy", calling on people not to be subjective about the damage the pandemic has caused to families and communities.
WHO urges countries to act quickly, apply containment measures commensurate with the rate of Covid-19 transmission, continue testing and analyzing positive specimens, deploy medicines and increase vaccination.
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WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus speaks at a conference on Covid-19 vaccines in Brussels, Belgium in February. Photo:AFP
Countries have now eased or lifted restrictions such as wearing masks and regulations on large gatherings. The number of tests has also decreased because the Omicron variant causes mild symptoms, with most people testing themselves at home.
The number of cases globally is now a fifth of the level recorded at the peak of last winter, when Omicron was spreading rapidly. However, experts say the actual number could be higher because of reduced testing.
The Omicron variant accounts for 99% of virus samples collected over the past 30 days. The BA.5 subtype remains dominant globally, accounting for 74%. The WHO said BA.5 is evolving more diversely, with additional mutations occurring in multiple locations.
