WASHINGTON: US president Joe Biden has urged Americans to get COVID-19 jabs amid global alarm over the new Omicron coronavirus variant but said the strain should be considered a “cause for concern, not a cause for panic”.
In remarks delivered at the White House on Monday, Biden said top United States health officials are consulting with leading vaccine makers and preparing for possible updates to account for Omicron’s mutations.
Biden told Americans he did not foresee new lockdowns or extending travel restrictions for now because of Omicron. “This variant is a cause for concern, not a cause for panic,” he said. “If you are vaccinated, but still worried about the new variant, get your booster. If you aren’t vaccinated, get that shot. Go get that first shot.”
The World Health Organisation (WHO) warned that the global risk from the spread of Omicron was “very high” and urged 194 member nations to speed the delivery of vaccinations to high-risk groups.
No Omicron-linked deaths had yet been reported, though further research is needed to assess its potential to escape protection against immunity induced by vaccines and previous infections, the WHO added.
“Omicron has an unprecedented number of spike mutations, some of which are concerning for their potential impact on the trajectory of the pandemic,” it said. The Omicron variant is “highly transmissible” and requires “urgent action”, the Group of Seven (G7) health ministers also said in a joint statement.
The mininsters praised South Africa for detecting the variant, while urging an international pathogen surveillance network to be established within the WHO. The rise of the Omicron variant is seen by some as validating earlier warnings that the unchecked spread of the virus in countries with low access to vaccines would lead to mutations and dangerous new variants.
“The inequity that has characterised the global response has now come home to roost,” Richard Hatchett, chief executive officer of the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations, told an assembly of health ministers at the WHO in Geneva.
Following emergency talks, G7 health ministers said “the global community is faced with the threat of a new, at a first evaluation, highly transmissible variant of COVID-19, which requires urgent action.”
“If another major surge of Covid-19 takes place driven by Omicron, consequences may be severe,” the WHO cautioned, concluding that “the overall global risk related to the new VOC (variant of concern) Omicron is assessed as very high.”
Scientists in South Africa said they had detected the new variant with at least 10 mutations, compared with three for Beta or two for Delta. However, South African doctor Angelique Coetzee, who raised the alarm over Omicron, said the cases she saw suggested the symptoms were milder than other variants.
Biden stressed that the United States was in a good position to control Omicron’s spread. “We have more tools today to fight the variant than we’ve ever had before,” he said, adding that his chief medical adviser Anthony Fauci expects current vaccines to work against the new variant, with boosters enhancing protection.
Omicron has prompted some countries to tighten border controls. On Monday, Japan joined Israel in announcing plans to bar all new foreign travellers. Australia announced it was delaying by two weeks the relaxation of restrictions that would have allowed skilled workers and foreign students to enter.
The growing list of countries to impose travel curbs on southern Africa includes Britain, Cambodia, Indonesia, the Netherlands, the Philippines, Saudi Arabia and the United States.
“The people of Africa cannot be blamed for the immorally low level of vaccinations available in Africa — and they should not be penalised for identifying and sharing crucial science and health information with the world,” UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said.
