The spread of COVID-19 in the United States is showing signs of slowing. Local media such as the New York Times (NYT) reported on the 22nd (local time) that there is a hopeful outlook that the high transmission power of Omicron infection has reached a ‘peak’.
The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in the United States averaged 720,000 per day last week. This is down from the 80,000 people in the previous week. The number of new patients admitted to hospitals is also declining. The New York Times reported that while promising data is coming out, the threat is still not gone. did. However, the media pointed out that the decrease in the spread of the virus in parts of the northeast and south central regions is still noteworthy.
In regions where the number of confirmed cases is rapidly decreasing, the number of confirmed cases surged at the end of December last year. This is similar to the pattern in South Africa, where omicron mutations were first reported. South Africa saw a 85% drop in new infections compared to mid-December, down from 23,400 per day to 3,500.
Scientists believe it is not yet clear whether Omicron has transformed COVID-19 from an infectious disease to a less threatening endemic one, or whether another outbreak will occur. Aubrey Gordon, an infectious disease epidemiologist at the University of Michigan, said: “It’s important that people don’t be relieved that it’s all over now. pointed out
Candles in memory of nurses who died of COVID-19 are lit in Lafayette Park in front of the White House in Washington, DC on January 13 (local time). [사진=AFP 연합뉴스 ]
CNN also reported on the 22nd that the appearance of mutations in Omicron at the end of November last year made the world tremble, but recently, as Omicron has become the dominant species in many countries, the perspective on the spread of Corona 19 has changed somewhat. Some scientists also reported that Omicron may have opened the final chapter of the pandemic.
Although transmission is strong, most of the people infected with Omicron account for a relatively low risk of serious illness or death, so a significant part of the human race can become immune. If this happens, it is pointed out that the so-called Corona 19 situation can go beyond a pandemic and enter an endemic phase. If we enter the endemic phase, restrictions on social functions such as lockdown and quarantine regulations will disappear.
CNN said, “For the first time since the onset of COVID-19, infectious disease experts and political leaders are examining the possibility that the spread of COVID-19 will change to an endemic state. It could be the entry into an endemic state of COVID-19,” he pointed out.
Some European countries, which have already led the UK, are making moves such as changing the premise of the national quarantine system to an endemic. Professor David Heyman of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine told CNN, “Personally, the Corona 19 virus is becoming endemic just like other coronaviruses, and I think it will remain endemic for the time being. The COVID-19 virus also appears to be succeeding in this attempt.”
- reporter information
- Yoon Eun-sook
- kaxin@ajunews.com
© ‘Global Economic Daily in 5 Languages’ Ajou Economic Daily. Unauthorized reproduction and redistribution prohibited
