Dr Hans Henri P. Kluge, WHO regional director for Europe, proclaimed in the July 19 release that it is “abundantly clear” Europe is faced with a similar situation presented last summer – “only this time the ongoing COVID-19 wave is being propelled by sub-lineages of the Omicron variant, notably BA.2 and BA.5, with each dominant sub-lineage of Omicron showing clear transmission advantages over the previously circulating viruses.”
The 53 countries within the region in question reported nearly 3 million new positive cases of COVID-19 last week, and are averaging around 3,000 related deaths each week, Sputnik reported.
The growing number of hospitalizations once again threatens to disrupt an already strained health system in many European nations.
“With rising cases, we’re also seeing a rise in hospitalizations, which are only set to increase further in the autumn and winter months,” Kluge remarked. “This forecast presents a huge challenge to the health workforce in the country after country, already under enormous pressure dealing with unrelenting crises since 2020.”
ZZ/PR