According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), Covid-19 is no longer a “global health emergency”.
The announcement, which comes three years after it initially raised its highest level of warning over the virus, is a significant step towards putting an end to the pandemic.
As of 24 April, slightly over 3,500 people had died from the illness, down from a peak of more than 100,000 per week in January 2021, according to officials.
According to the WHO director, the epidemic claimed at least seven million lives.
Excellent Hope
The real number, according to Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, is “likely” closer to 20 million deaths, which is almost three times the official estimate. He also issued a warning that the virus still poses a serious threat.
“The Emergency Committee convened for the fifteenth time yesterday, and they advised that I declare the public health emergency of international importance to be over. That suggestion has my consent. Therefore, it is with great optimism that I pronounce Covid-19 to be no longer be a worldwide health emergency, stated Dr. Tedros.
He continued by saying that the choice had been thoroughly thought through for a while and was based on a rigorous examination of the available evidence.
He did, however, issue a warning that the threat had not abated and that the emergency status might be restored if circumstances altered.
The worst thing any nation could do right now, according to him, was to let its guard down, remove the systems it had put in place, or tell its citizens not to worry about COVID-19.
In January 2020, the World Health Organisation (WHO) initially designated Covid-19 as a PHEIC (public health emergency of international concern).
This indicated that concerted international effort was required to safeguard humans against the novel pathogen.
It is now up to individual nations to continue managing Covid however they see fit.
One of the pandemic’s key turning points was the introduction of vaccines. The WHO estimates that 13 billion doses have been administered, protecting a large number of individuals from fatal sickness and serious illness.
However, the majority of those in need have not received immunisations in many nations.
Worldwide, there have been more than 765 million confirmed Covid infections.
Like many other nations, the US and UK have already discussed “living with the virus” and have scaled back many of the tests and social mixing regulations.
The hazard may still exist, according to Dr. Mike Ryan of the WHO’s health emergencies division, even though the emergency has passed.
This is the history of pandemics, therefore we fully anticipate that this virus will continue to spread, he said.
“It took decades for the 1918 pandemic virus to reach its ultimate stages of extinction.
“Pandemics typically end when the next pandemic starts,”
