Covid-19 news: Omicron won’t be the last variant – WHO
Omicron won’t be the last variant, and comprehensive strategies are still needed to reduce severe disease, deaths and transmission, according to Maria Van Kerkhove, the WHO’s technical lead officer on Covid. She said at a briefing on Tuesday that countries shouldn’t abandon well-established, life-saving interventions, such as social distancing, mask-wearing, good ventilation and avoiding crowds. Bruce Aylward, senior adviser at the WHO, said if countries give up, “there’ll be more transmission, more infections, more mutations and more risk in terms of variants. There are consequences, additional risks if you throw in the towel.”