European Center for Disease Control Says “Vaccine Alone Will Not Sufficient” Against Omicron

A “strong action” is “urgent“Versus the rapid advance of the omicron variant and”vaccination alone will not suffice“The European Center for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC) warned this Wednesday.

“In the current situation, vaccination alone will not prevent the impact of the omicron variant, because there is no time to cover the existing vaccination deficits”Stated (ECDC) Director Andrea Ammon in a video statement.

The European agency also raised its risk assessment of this variant one notch, to a level of “very high”, Recommending a series of measures, including a return to teleworking and greater caution in end-of-year celebrations and trips.

As he said, it is “very likely“That the new variant causes hospitalizations and deaths in addition to those already foreseen by the previous projections focused on delta, until now dominant.

So that the burden on the health system continues to be “manageable“, The ECDC reiterated its call for the” rapid reintroduction and strengthening “of the measures called “Non-pharmaceutical” against COVID-19, a term that encompasses restrictions in general.

“Strong action is urgently needed to reduce transmission, reduce the heavy burden on health systems and protect the most vulnerable in the coming months”Added the ECDC, which covers the 27 EU countries, Norway and Iceland.

The omicron variant spreads “at a pace that we have never seen with any other variant “, the World Health Organization (WHO) had already warned on Tuesday, calling for the use of all possible anti-COVID tools to prevent health systems from being quickly overwhelmed as the end of the year holidays approach.

For the ECDC, use the masks, telework, avoid crowded places and public transport, stay home when sick, ventilate and maintain a high level of hygiene “remain a priority”.

For probable or confirmed cases of omicron, tracing should also be a priority, and testing remains “an important tool”Even when people are vaccinated, as well as the isolation of all positive COVID-19 cases.