“We fear 236 thousand deaths until December” – breaking latest news

The Covid emergency does not stop. Between now and December 1 in Europe there could be “thousands more deaths” as reported by the regional director of the World Health Organization for Europe, Hans Kluge, speaking of a forecast of “236 thousand deaths in the next three months
“. Meanwhile, according to Johns Hopkins University, the global death toll since the beginning of the pandemic exceeds 4.5 million.

WHO: “The third dose of vaccine is not a luxury”

Kluge called the levels of high transmission of the virus recorded “deeply worrying”, saying that 33 of the 53 countries in the WHO Europe have reported an increase in cases related to the coronavirus of 10% or more in recent weeks. In the last six weeks, vaccinations have decreased by 14%, “due to a lack of access to vaccines in some countries and a lack of acceptance of vaccination in others”. Kluge urges – therefore – to increase the production capacity and to share the available doses, putting aside any “nationalist temptations”. A third booster dose of the vaccine it is “a way to keep the most vulnerable safe and not a luxuryKluge clarified.

“Right to receive a full vaccination course”

Vaccination “is a right, but it is also a responsibility”, clarified Kluge. Vaccines are – in fact – the path towards the reopening of societies and the stabilization of economies, he pointed out: «In about 8 months, almost 850 million doses were administered, with almost half of the population of the Region completely vaccinated. This is a remarkable achievement. However, in the past 6 weeks, the spread of vaccination in the Region has slowed, influenced by the lack of access to vaccines in some countries and lack of vaccine acceptance in others“. In short, there is a clear need to increase production, share doses and improve access to vaccines in the Member States: “Everyone, everywhere, should have the right to receive the complete vaccination course “.

“Priority to teachers in the vaccination campaign”

What matters now, WHO points out, is that teachers and school staff fall into the priority categories to receive the two doses of the Covid vaccine. In the note written together with Unicef ​​it is clarified that the immunization of school workers is “a fundamental measure to be able to keep the classrooms open and welcome students in attendance”. The recommendation, which follows the one made in November 2020 before the advent of vaccines, is aimed at recalling the importance of vaccinating “the most vulnerable people” of the population. The warning from the two UN agencies arrives a few weeks after the resumption of the school year, recalling how it is “vital that classroom learning continues uninterrupted”, notwithstanding the spread of the Delta variant all over the world. Schools – concludes Kluge – help to give children the means to be “happy and productive individuals within society”.