Several countries around the world are experiencing an increase in COVID-19 cases since the emergence of the Omicron variant of the virus. Millions of cases have been reported globally, with the World Health Organization (WHO) stating that the highly contagious virus could infect more than half of Europe's population by March. Some U.S. officials have predicted that most people will contract the virus at some point.
On Wednesday, WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned that the Omicron variant, spreading at an unprecedented rate since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, "remains a dangerous virus," despite causing less severe symptoms. He stated during a press conference, "Although Omicron causes milder symptoms than Delta (the variant that has been dominant until now), it remains a dangerous virus, especially for unvaccinated people."
Identified in South Africa in late November 2021, this variant has rapidly spread worldwide at levels not seen since the pandemic began. The milder symptoms of Omicron, particularly for fully vaccinated individuals and those who received booster doses, compared to Delta, have led some to consider it a "mild" illness. However, Ghebreyesus cautioned that "more infections mean more hospitalizations, more deaths, more people unable to work, including teachers and medical staff, and a greater risk of the emergence of another variant that could be more contagious and cause more deaths than Omicron."
Michael Ryan, WHO's emergency situations chief, remarked, "It's not a mild disease; it's a preventable disease through vaccines." He added, "Now is not the time to let our guard down or to say that it is a welcome virus; no virus is welcome."
Some hope that due to its rapid spread rate, Omicron will replace more dangerous variants and allow the pandemic to transition into a more manageable disease. According to Dr. Maria Van Kerkhove, who oversees the COVID-19 pandemic response at WHO, "The virus is on its way to becoming endemic, but we have not reached that stage yet," noting the difficulty in predicting future developments, including the emergence of new variants.
She explained that it was possible to put an end to the pandemic, but this requires increased vaccination rates globally, not just in wealthy countries, alongside decreased infection rates. "How the pandemic will end is entirely up to us," she stated.
WHO anticipates that "the virus will continue to evolve," and it also predicts ongoing outbreaks among unvaccinated individuals, with the world potentially facing overlapping pandemics, such as COVID-19 and influenza, as people begin to socialize again.
The less severe symptoms of Omicron, particularly for fully vaccinated individuals and those who have received booster doses compared to the Delta variant, have led some to classify it as a "mild" disease. The coronavirus has caused at least 5,503,347 deaths worldwide since it emerged in China in December 2019, with the United States recording the highest death toll at 842,322, followed by Brazil (620,238), India (484,655), and Russia (318,432). WHO estimates that the total number of deaths may be two to three times higher, taking into account the excess deaths attributed to the pandemic.
