WHO warns of long road ahead, may never be a ‘silver bullet’

‘The World Health Organisation warned on Monday that there might never be a “silver bullet” for Covid-19 in the form of a perfect vaccine, and that the road to normality will be long, with some countries requiring a reset of strategy. WHO director general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus and WHO emergencies head Mike Ryan exhorted nations to rigorously enforce health measures such as mask-wearing, social distancing, handwashing, contact tracing and testing. “For now, stopping outbreaks comes down to the basics of public health and disease control. The message to people and governments is clear: ‘Do it all’,” Tedros told a virtual news briefing from the UN body’s headquarters in Geneva.’

Read here (South China Morning Post, August 3, 2020)

From green backlash to reimposition of border controls, pandemic is accelerating tensions that could unravel the EU

‘EU leaders should not slacken in their efforts to tackle climate change. The east-west rift is alarming and cannot be resolved by tolerating disrespect for the rule of law. As for the north-south divide, the ECB may be able to do enough to keep Italy and other southern member-states in the eurozone. But the politics of an unresolved rift may turn very nasty, increasing anti-EU sentiment across the bloc – and could even trigger a country leaving the EU or the euro,’ says Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform.

Read here (The Guardian, May 14, 2020)

Coronavirus may never go away, World Health Organization warns

‘The coronavirus "may never go away", the World Health Organization (WHO) has warned. Speaking at a briefing on Wednesday, WHO emergencies director Dr Mike Ryan warned against trying to predict when the virus would disappear. "It is important to put this on the table: this virus may become just another endemic virus in our communities, and this virus may never go away," Dr Ryan told the virtual press conference from Geneva. HIV has not gone away - but we have come to terms with the virus."Dr Ryan then said he doesn't believe "anyone can predict when this disease will disappear".

Read here (BBC, May 14, 2020)

‘2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history’

Dr Rick Bright, former Director of the Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority (BARDA), testified in a hearing at the US House of Representatives. Dr. Bright filed a whistleblower complaint shortly after being removed from his position at BARDA, alleging that he was removed in retaliation for conflicts regarding US government policies regarding medical countermeasures for COVID-19. In his opening statement, Dr. Bright forecasts that “2020 will be the darkest winter in modern history” and emphasizes the importance of basing policy and operational decisions on reliable scientific evidence.

Read here (CNN, May 13, 2020)