WHO announces the end of the new coronavirus "state of emergency" "Continue to be vigilant"

WHO = World Health Organization announced on the 5th that it will end the declaration of a "public health emergency of international concern" issued in response to the spread of the new coronavirus.

On the other hand, at the press conference, Director-General Tedros said, "We must not send a message to the public that we are not worried about the new coronavirus," and called on countries to continue to be vigilant.

WHO Director-General Tedros held a press conference in Geneva, where the headquarters are located, on the 5th and announced that the declaration of a "public health emergency of international concern" that had been issued since January 2020 in response to the spread of the new coronavirus would end.

The WHO
has decided to terminate the declaration based on factors such as a global decline in the number of deaths,
improved herd immunity through vaccination and infection,
and a reduction in the burden on the healthcare system.

At the press conference, Director-General Tedros said, "The time has come to move from an emergency response state to a stage where it can be managed together with other infectious diseases," and called on countries to proceed with responses based on the premise that the novel coronavirus exists.

On the other hand, he said, "The virus continues to take lives and mutate, and after the declaration ends, countries should not send a message to their citizens that they are not worried about the novel coronavirus," and called on countries to continue to be vigilant.

The state of emergency, which had been issued for about three years and three months, has ended, and the world's measures against the new coronavirus have reached a major milestone.

Hokkaido University Hiroshi Kida: "How to come to terms is important"

Hiroshi Kida, director of the International Joint Research Institute for Zoonotic Diseases at Hokkaido University, a member of the expert committee that discusses whether the WHO should continue the "state of emergency," said, "The new coronavirus may increase throughout the body, and the pathogenicity has not weakened. However, the increase in the number of infected people is slowing, and the spread of infection around the world for more than three years has made many people immune and less likely to become seriously ill. In addition, vaccines and new drugs are being put into practical use. The situation surrounding the novel coronavirus is improving."

He then stated, "I think it is a good time to think that we have entered the era of 'with corona' based on the premise that there is a new coronavirus, and it is important to think further about how to come to terms with the new corona from now on."

"We shouldn't think we're safe anymore."

On the other hand, he said, "Some people with weakened immune systems, such as the elderly and people with underlying diseases, die when infected, and we should not think that the new coronavirus is safe anymore just by looking at the fact that the fatality rate is decreasing," and emphasized the need for vigilance in the future.

What is an "emergency"?

In January 2020, WHO declared a "Public Health Emergency of International Concern" based on the International Health Regulations.

The declaration of a "state of emergency" has the significance of encouraging countries to strengthen their measures, and WHO has since called on countries to take measures to prevent the spread of infection, promote the development of vaccines and treatments, promote vaccination, and strengthen surveillance systems for mutated viruses. We have been promoting the supply of vaccines and therapeutic drugs to developing countries within an international framework.

The WHO has held a panel of experts once every three months to discuss the response to the coronavirus and whether it constitutes an "emergency," and Director-General Tedros has decided whether to continue or lift the coronavirus based on the results of the discussions.

More than 7 million people infected worldwide, more than 133.<> billion vaccinations

According to the WHO, the cumulative number of infected people worldwide is about 5 million, and about 3.7 million people have died as of May 6500, while the number of vaccinations has reached more than 690.4 billion as of April 29.

The new corona cannot be eradicated, and it is expected that the spread of infection will occur repeatedly in the future, but as treatment has progressed and pills to prevent the disease from becoming more severe, the proportion of people who become seriously ill or die when infected is decreasing.

Regarding measures in Japan, experts point out that it is necessary to maintain a monitoring system to prevent the spread of highly contagious mutated viruses, to strengthen the medical system when the infection spreads, and to continue basic infection control measures such as wearing non-woven masks and ventilation according to the situation, and refraining from going out when there are symptoms.

How did it spread in Japan?

As of January 2020, 1, when the WHO declared a "state of emergency", the number of confirmed infections in Japan was 30 Japan 12 according to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare.

Since then, Japan has experienced eight waves of infection, and by the 8th, the cumulative number of infected people has reached nearly 5 million, and the number of deaths has risen to nearly 3400,7.

"Reduce contact opportunities by at least 7%" First state of emergency declaration

The first confirmed infection in Japan Japan was on January 2020, 1, and on April 15, the government issued the first "state of emergency" based on the law in seven prefectures, including Tokyo, and asked them to reduce the opportunities for contact between people by "at least 4% and as much as 7%."

In the first wave of the spread of infection, by the end of May 7, the number of infected people was about 7,8, and 1 people died, and the proportion of infected people who died, the fatality rate was as high as 2020.5%.

The fatality rate gradually decreases, but the number of infected people increases by orders of magnitude

There have been a total of eight waves of the spread of infection, but the fatality rate tends to gradually decrease, and in order to balance infection control and socio-economic activities, the "state of emergency" was declared after the "fifth wave" in the summer of 8, when the Delta variant of the mutated virus spread, and the "priority measures to prevent the spread of infection" were no longer issued after the "sixth wave" from the beginning of 2021, when the Omicron variant spread.

On the other hand, since the spread of the highly infectious Omicron variant, the number of infected people has increased by orders of magnitude, and the medical system has been tightened, which has greatly affected not only corona but also general medical care such as emergency care, and the number of deaths has increased.

In the eighth wave this winter, the fatality rate is 5.2022%, but the number of people who died in January 6 was the highest ever, with some days exceeding 8 in a single day, and in the three months from December 0 to the end of February this year, the number of people died was nearly 23,2023, accounting for 1% of the people who died so far.

At first, many people died of severe pneumonia due to infection with the new coronavirus, but now there may be more cases of elderly people with serious chronic illnesses and other people dying due to worsening of their condition triggered by infection.

Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare: "Shift to medium- to long-term measures is in the same direction as Japan"

Since the WHO declared a state of emergency, various measures have been taken to prevent the spread of the new coronavirus in Japan countries.

In February 2020, we enforced a cabinet order to designate the novel coronavirus as a "designated infectious disease" under the Infectious Diseases Act and a "quarantine infectious disease" under the Quarantine Act. By placing it as "equivalent to Class 2" under the Infectious Diseases Act, it has become possible to take strict measures such as hospitalization recommendations and work restrictions.

However, based on the latest infection situation, it has been officially decided that the position of the new coronavirus as an infectious disease will be shifted to Class 2, which is the same as seasonal influenza, on the 8th of this month.

The Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare said, "We recognize that the WHO's shift from crisis management measures to medium- to long-term measures is in the same direction as Japan. We will work to vaccinate people at high risk of developing severe illness, such as the elderly, and develop a medical care provision system, and strive to provide information so that individuals can take appropriate infection prevention measures."

Chairman Omi, Government Subcommittee: "The decision is appropriate, but it is not the end"

Shigeru Omi, chairman of the government subcommittee, said, "The number of infected people is gradually decreasing worldwide, and the Japan number of deaths has recently decreased, reducing the burden on medical care.

"However, this does not mean that the infection of the new coronavirus is over or over, and I hope that the infection will continue to move toward a low level in the future, but it is possible that the number of infected people will continue to increase sharply, and medical care will be overwhelmed. I believe that taking measures such as moderating actions with a high risk of infection based on past experiences based on citizens' own personal judgment will continue to be effective as before."