Vietnam Should Keep Abreast of WHO’s Info about New COVID Variants: Expert
Vietnam ought to keep abreast of the World Health Organization (WHO)’s information about the transmission and virulence of some new COVID-19 variants in the current context, said Associate Professor-Doctor Tran Dac Phu, former director of the Department of Preventive Medicine, under the Ministry of Health (MoH).
The Vietnamese expert made the suggestion after the WHO announced that it has closely watched some new COVID-19 variants, of which EG.5 is now dominant in the U.S. and the UK. So far, the WHO has yet to issue any specific warnings about the transmission and virulence of this new variant.
Mr. Phu called on people to continue to take some preventive measures such as facemask-wearing, hand disinfection, and COVID-19 vaccination.
The Ministry of Health completed profiles to downgrade COVID-19 to Group B of dangerous diseases from Group A of extremely dangerous illnesses. Vietnam has maintained its supervision over daily new infections, serious cases, and deaths.
The country has reported some dozen coronavirus cases per day since August, and the number of vaccine doses has declined. Since July 20, no coronavirus vaccine doses have been administered in Vietnam.