WHO: Europe Likely to See 2M COVID-19 Deaths by March
The World Health Organization regional office for Europe warns of the alarming number of COVID-19 deaths expected by March 2022 in Europe, and the office's director urges vaccine plus' approach.
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COVID-19 is the number one reason for death across Europe and Central Asia.
Europe will witness two million COVID-19 deaths by March, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.
The WHO Europe regional office Tuesday informed that the 53-country area could see another 700,000 COVID-19 deaths in the next four months if vaccination efforts are not increased.
The dire warning arose as the number of daily deaths increased to almost 4,200, which is double the daily deaths reported at the end of September.
Reported deaths from the virus have already passed the 1.5 million mark for the 53 countries that make up the WHO European region, according to the global health agency.
COVID-19 is the number one reason for death across Europe and Central Asia, and the WHO said it expected "high or extreme stress on hospital beds in 25 countries and high or extreme stress in intensive care units in 49 of [the] 53 countries between now and March 2022."
Today, the #COVID19 situation across Europe and central Asia is very serious. We face a challenging winter ahead, but we should not be without hope, because all of us – governments, health authorities, individuals – can take decisive action to stabilize the pandemic. https://t.co/XYPcK9X6Mb
— Hans Kluge (@hans_kluge) November 23, 2021
Dr. Hans Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, reiterated that "in order to live with this virus and continue our daily lives, we need to take a 'vaccine plus' approach."
He reminded of the precautions that need to be taken, such as "wearing a mask, washing hands, ventilating indoor spaces, keeping physical distance and sneezing into your elbow are simple, effective ways of gaining control over the virus and keeping societies going."
"All of us have the opportunity and responsibility to help prevent unnecessary tragedy and loss of life, and limit further disruption to society and businesses over this winter season."
Meanwhile, European Union ministers who met in Brussels Tuesday, November 23, debated the deployment of boosters around the region to push back the rising tide of COVID-19 cases.
