No likelihood of ‘silver bullet’ vaccine, says WHO
Global health authority urges countries to continue disease control procedures
GENEVA/PARIS: Dashing high hopes for the Covid-19 vaccine, the World Health Organisation said that there may never be a “silver bullet” answer to the new coronavirus.
“We hope to have a number of effective vaccines that can help prevent people from infection.
“However, there’s no silver bullet at the moment and there might never be,” WHO director-general Tedros Adhanom said during an online press conference in Geneva on Monday.
Tedros’ statement comes as health experts across the world race to develop antidotes for the deadly disease.
The WHO chief also exhorted countries and citizens to continue to follow the basics, such as testing, contact tracing, practicing social distancing and wearing a mask to contain the spread of the pandemic which has thrown normal life out of gear around the globe.
“For now, stopping outbreaks comes down to the basics of public health and disease control. Do it all.”
The pandemic has killed at least 690,000 people worldwide, with more than 18 million people infected, according to an AFP tally on Monday based on official sources.
The United States had the most deaths with 154,944, followed by Brazil with 94,104, Mexico 47,746, the
United Kingdom with 46,210 and India with 38,135 fatalities.
Belgium had the highest per capita death rate, with 849 per million of the population.
In the Philippines capital Manila, four provinces in Luzon was back under lockdown from yesterday, a measure affecting 27 million people.
Since the beginning of June, when much of the country emerged from one of the world’s longest stay-athome orders, confirmed infections in the archipelago have increased fivefold, surging past 100,000.
Meanwhile, Norway announced restrictions on cruises along its coast after dozens were infected with coronavirus on board a ship run by Hurtigruten, which suspended its operations.
Health authorities fear the ship also could have spread the virus to dozens of towns and villages along Norway’s western coast.
Russia said it aimed to launch mass production of a coronavirus vaccine next month and turn out “several million” doses per month by next year.
The country is pushing ahead with several prototypes and officials said that one, prepared at the Gamaleya institute in Moscow, has reached advanced stages of development. – Agencies