The World Briefly

May 08, 2023

The End

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The World Health Organization declared an end to the Covid-19 emergency over the weekend, a move that marks the official conclusion of one of worst pandemics in modern history, the Wall Street Journal reported.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus announced the end of the emergency, saying that the pandemic has seen a downward trend in infections for more than a year because people have built up immunity to the virus.

He noted that the trends have allowed countries to return to normal, adding that the death rate has decreased and there is less pressure on health systems.

The WHO chief and many health officials described the announcement as a major milestone for the world – more than three years after the pandemic began.

The pathogen was discovered spreading in Wuhan, China in late 2019. Since then, nearly seven million people have died around the world and many others continue to suffer long-term health problems related to the infection.

The pandemic’s impact reverberated around the globe: It shattered the illusion that humanity had control over its environment, affected politics and international relations, and prompted questions about global public health systems.

But it also saw the advancement of new scientific and healthcare breakthroughs, including faster vaccine development and better global disease-monitoring systems to prepare for future pandemics.

Still, a rise in misinformation about health and medicine, and an increasing distrust in science and vaccines have raised concerns among scientists about what might occur if there is another pandemic.

Meanwhile, epidemiologists say that Covid-19 is not endemic yet, which means that it hasn’t settled into a predictable or stable pattern. Instead, new, more dangerous variants may emerge.

The XBB.1.16 variant, a recently discovered strain of Covid-19, caused a significant increase in cases in India and is now spreading across more than 30 countries, including the United States. In April, the WHO designated this strain of the pathogen as a “variant of interest.”

In his announcement, Tedros cautioned that Covid-19 is still present and announced the creation of a committee to develop guidance for countries to manage Covid-19 in the long term, including handling new variants.

“Covid has changed our world, and it has changed us,” Tedros said. “If we all go back to how things were before Covid-19, we will have failed to learn our lessons, and we will have failed future generations. This experience must change us all for the better.”

This story originally appeared in the May 08, 2023 newsletter, Eldorado's Slums.