WHO "Omicron Less Fatal Than Delta but Not Mild"

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, WHO Director-General
Photo by Reuters Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Cho Hyun-ui] The World Health Organization (WHO) stated that while the COVID-19 Omicron variant appears to be less deadly than the Delta variant, it should not be classified as mild.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said in a briefing on the 6th (local time), "The Omicron variant is causing hospitalizations and deaths just like previous variants," emphasizing this point.

Director-General Ghebreyesus expressed concern, saying, "Last week saw the highest number of confirmed cases reported," and "The Omicron tsunami is so large and fast that it is overwhelming health systems worldwide."

According to WHO, the number of new confirmed cases last week was 9,520,488, a 71% increase compared to the previous week. However, the number of deaths during the same period decreased by 10% to 41,178.

Janet Diaz, head of WHO's clinical management team, also stated, "Initial studies on cases detected last November in South Africa and Hong Kong indicate that the probability of hospitalization for Omicron infections is lower than that of the Delta variant."

However, the impact on unvaccinated elderly populations remains uncertain, as most initial cases occurred among younger individuals.

WHO reiterated that vaccines remain effective in reducing hospitalizations and deaths and emphasized the equitable distribution of vaccines.

Director-General Ghebreyesus warned, "At the current pace, 109 countries risk failing to meet WHO's goal of vaccinating 70% of their populations against COVID-19 by mid-year."

He added, "The biggest failure last year was overall vaccine inequality," and stressed, "To end the acute phase of the pandemic, we must share the highly effective tools that science has provided equitably and quickly."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.