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The new coronavirus, which causes COVID-19 disease, can become an endemic virus and therefore “never go away,” said the director of Health Emergencies at the World Health Organization (WHO), Mike Ryan.
When at least five months have passed since the pathogen began to circulate among humans – which is believed to have happened in China – and many wonder when international efforts to contain it will give convincing results, the senior official acknowledged that the coronavirus may remain, as so many other viruses, like measles or HIV.
“It can become another endemic virus in our communities and these viruses may never go away,” Ryan said at a virtual press conference.
He also said that it is very difficult to project how long it will circulate in the way it does now, especially since studies being carried out in various countries reveal that the percentage of the infected population is relatively low.
This percentage includes people who did not know that they had contracted the coronavirus because they were asymptomatic or the symptoms they presented were very mild, but that they have produced antibodies because at some point they were infected.
Likewise, the hope for a rapid vaccine is still uncertain and Ryan argued that for it to become a true alternative to eliminate the coronavirus it should be highly effective, available to all who need it worldwide and, ultimately, be used massively.
The official data
According to data released today by the WHO, the number of people infected with the new coronavirus in the world amounts to 4.17 million, of which 84,290 cases correspond to the last twenty-four hours.
Deaths from COVID-19 rise to 287,399, with 4,278 deaths on the last day.
Today’s count confirms that the new focus of the pandemic has moved to the American continent, which has surpassed Europe in number of infections.
Russia has become the second country in the world most affected by the coronavirus, with more than 242,000 cases, according to the multilateral organization.
Despite this, the Russian Government has decided to lift the six-week confinement and order the workers to return to their activities, given the bad situation in which the national economy finds itself.
Brazil is already very close to overtaking Germany, which would move it to sixth place among the countries with the most cases of coronavirus, although it already surpassed it in number of deaths.
While Germany has so far had 7,634 deaths from COVID-19, Brazil already registers more than 11,500.
Borders in Europe
The WHO Director of Emergencies also commented on the reopening of borders that will soon start in some Central European countries, after lifting the social quarantine measures, and said that in a first phase land transit between countries will be easier and more controllable.
He explained that countries will have to assess whether the country with which they plan to open borders has a similar risk of coronavirus and if their control measures are comparable. If so, neither country would take an extra risk.
“In itself, crossing a land border would not be too high a risk. If the risk and the measures are similar, exchanging travelers and tourists does not make a big difference,” he said.
Ryan predicted that travel and trade will likely resume first between countries in the same geographic area that will try to equalize their risks.
Air travel will be more complex and risk management will require more sophisticated means, including deciding from which countries you can travel to another, as well as the procedures to be established at departure and arrival airports, and during the trip.
WHO is currently working with the International Air Transport Association (IATA) on directives to enable airlines to resume operations.
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