Head of the National Center for Com- municable Diseases Ts.Bilegtsaikhan:

The wave of the Omicron variant of COVID-19 is declining internationally. South Korea, Japan and China were among the 10 countries with the highest weekly infection cases. More than 50,000 new infections are reported each day in South Korea, compared to 5,000 per day in Russia.

As our southern and northern neighbors, the countries with which we have the most extensive contacts, continue to be infected, citizens need to be aware of the risks involved in traveling abroad. Even though Mongolia has controlled the spread of the infection to some extent, less than 100 cases are being logged a day, so we need to be vigilant and maintain an infection control regime.

Omicron subvariants BA.1, BA.2, BA.3, BA.4, and BA.5 have been reported internationally, with BA.2 predominating in more than 90 percent of cases. In Mongolia, between January and March, Omicron’s BA.1 symptoms predominated and in late April and early May, BA.2 symptoms were detected in 80 percent of laboratory confirmed cases. In late April and early May, BA.2 symptoms were confirmed by laboratory tests for 80 percent of new cases. BA.2 is less clinically severe than BA.1 and presents with gastrointestinal upset.

I would like to also remind the public that health facilities are on high alert and that they need to be actively involved in additional doses to restore their immunity. The Minister of Health is organizing a month-long campaign to increase the coverage of additional shots. The campaign will focus on organizing mobile vaccination campaigns, disseminating key information to people at risk, and intensifying vaccinations in coordination with local authorities.