Baku, November 19, AZERTAC
In the midst of the early successes of Moderna and Pfizer’s promising vaccine candidates, the head of the World Health Organization warned that a vaccine alone won’t end the Covid-19 pandemic, stressing that the “virus will still have a lot (of) room to move” once vaccines start to roll out, according to Forbes magazine.
In a video Monday, WHO head Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that while a vaccine is “essential for bringing the pandemic under control” it is used to complement other pandemic fighting tools, “not replace them.”
“A vaccine on its own, will not end the pandemic,” he said.
With an initial vaccine supply limited, Tedros said that health workers, older people and other at-risk populations will be prioritized.
While this should hopefully relieve pressure on healthcare systems and reduce deaths, Tedros warned that “the virus will still have a lot of room to move.”
Even with a vaccine, Tedros said it will be important to continue existing disease-fighting measures like contact tracing, testing, surveillance, and isolating cases, as well as encouraging communities and individuals to be careful.
“We still have a long road to travel,” Tedros said.