Half of Europe could be Infected With COVID by March - WHO warns

 

The number of infections has more than doubled within 14 days: The European Director of the WHO calls the spread of the omicron variant "unprecedented" - and warns: the virus is not yet endemic.

The World Health Organization (WHO) expects the corona variant Omicron to spread explosively in Europe . In the first week of the new year, there were more than seven million newly reported Covid-19 cases in Europe. The number of infections more than doubled within two weeks, said WHO European Director Hans Kluge on Tuesday. 

"At this rate, the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation (IHME) predicts that more than 50 percent of the region's population will be infected with Omicron in the next six to eight weeks," said Kluge, referring to the university's research institute of Washington in Seattle. Omicron infects human cells faster because of its mutations, this also affects vaccinated and convalescent people.

According to Kluge, the "unprecedented" spread of the coronavirus is already noticeable in an increase in Covid 19 patients in hospitals, but the death rate is stable. The new wave of infections puts "the health systems and the service sector in many countries in which Omicron has spread very quickly, under pressure," said the WHO representative.

WHO: Coronavirus not yet endemic

The WHO warned against treating Covid-19 as an endemic disease like the flu. “We still have a great deal of uncertainty and a virus that is moving very quickly and presenting us with new challenges. We are certainly not at the point where we can call it endemic, "said WHO emergency expert Catherine Smallwood.

Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez said on Monday that it might be time for a less strict follow-up to corona infections. The government is thinking about ways like a classic flu, since the death rate from corona diseases has fallen. This should also be discussed at European level (read more about this here).

Vaccinations also help against Omicron

Kluge emphasized that corona vaccinations are still of great importance. Approved corona vaccines would "continue to offer good protection against serious illness and death, even with Omicron Variant."

The Omicron variant is currently spreading rapidly in Europe. In some countries it is already the dominant coronavirus variant among new infections. WHO Europe is responsible for 53 countries and territories not only in Europe but also in Central Asia . According to their information, 26 of these countries recently reported that more than one percent of their residents were infected with the corona virus every week. In the first week of the new year alone, more than seven million new infections were reported in the region.