Omicron cases doubling at least every 3 days, WHO says
Al JazeeraGlobal health agency says there are ‘still limited data’ on the clinical severity of new variant, which has so far been reported in 89 countries. “More data are needed to understand the severity profile and how severity is impacted by vaccination and pre-existing immunity.” It added, “There are still limited available data, and no peer-reviewed evidence, on vaccine efficacy or effectiveness to date for Omicron.” On Friday, a non-peer reviewed study by Imperial College London said the risk of reinfection with Omicron is more than five times higher and it has shown no sign of being milder than Delta. The study was released as British officials reported record COVID-19 cases for the third consecutive day, with a rise to 93,045 new infections, while French Prime Minister Jean Castex likened Omicron’s spread in Europe to “lightning”. It came after WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said Omicron “is spreading at a rate we have not seen with any previous variant” and lamented that some people were dismissing it as a mild variant.