Story at a glance
- The World Health Organization said Thursday that surging cases across the globe could create a pathway for new variants to emerge.
- “The pandemic continues to evolve with four variants of concern dominating global epidemiology,” WHO said in a statement.
- The four variants identified thus far include the delta strain, which was first discovered in India.
The World Health Organization (WHO) said Thursday that surging cases across the globe could create a pathway for new variants to emerge.
“The pandemic continues to evolve with four variants of concern dominating global epidemiology,” WHO said in a statement. “The Committee recognised (sic) the strong likelihood for the emergence and global spread of new and possibly more dangerous variants of concern that may be even more challenging to control.”
Didier Houssin, chair of the WHO Emergency COVID-19 Committee, said that the pandemic “is nowhere near finished,” as the delta variant has created regional surges, particularly among unvaccinated populations.
“We are still running after this virus and the virus is still running after us,” Houssin continued.
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The four variants of concern identified by the WHO thus far include the delta variant, which was first discovered in India. The strain has reached 111 countries and accounts for nearly 58 percent of all new cases in the U.S.
“We expect it to be the dominant strain circulating worldwide, if it isn’t already,” said WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
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Tedros argued Monday that “greed” is driving the “catastrophic wave of cases” across the globe, saying the world is “in the midst of a growing two-track pandemic where the haves and have-nots within and between countries are increasingly divergent.”
“Even countries that successfully managed to ward off the early waves of the virus through public health measures alone, are now in the midst of devastating outbreaks,” he added.
Data shows that nearly 26 percent of the global population has received at least one COVID-19 vaccine dose. Yet merely 1 percent of people in lower-income countries have been vaccinated. The WHO urged governments on Friday to focus efforts on vaccinating 10 percent of their country’s citizens by September.
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