COVID-19 Pandemic Continues as a Public Gealth Emergency

The WHO Director-General today announced the Report from the fourteenth meeting of the International Health Regulations (2005) (IHR) Emergency Committee regarding the COVID-19 pandemic, which took place held on January 27, 2023.

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, the Director-General, acknowledged the Committee’s views that the COVID-19 pandemic is probably at a transition point and appreciates the advice of the Committee to navigate this transition carefully and mitigate the potential negative consequences.

Achieving higher levels of population immunity globally, either through infection and/or vaccination, may limit the impact of SARS-CoV-2 on morbidity and mortality, but there is little doubt that this virus will remain a permanently established pathogen in humans and animals for the foreseeable future. 

However, the WHO Director-General determined that the event continues to constitute a public health emergency of international concern.

The Committee was informed that, globally, 13.1 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines have been administered, with 89% of health workers and 81% of older adults (over 60 years) having completed the primary series.