World health officials scrambled to react to the growing omicron outbreak Wednesday amid new evidence that the variant may have been spreading earlier than first detected.
"It will be coming," Dr. Richard Besser, a former acting director of the CDC, told NBC News Tuesday night."Being ready for it and being able to react based on how severe it is — is critically important."The discovery of omicron has sparked international concern that it could prolong the pandemic, which has already claimed more than 5 million lives worldwide.
“I well understand the concern of all countries to protect their citizens against a variant that we don’t yet fully understand,” Tedros said. “But I am equally concerned that several member states are introducing blunt, blanket measures that are not evidence-based or effective on their own, and which will only worsen inequities.”, which accounts for almost all cases globally, remains highly transmissible and dangerous.
Also on Wednesday, the WHO agreed to launch negotiations on an international pact to prevent and control future pandemics, calling it a"once-in-a-generation opportunity" to strengthen global health response systems. Tedros urged member states to end the current pandemic as"a matter of choice," and work towards vaccinating 40 percent of the population of every country by the end of this year.