Thread by @kakape

I’m so tired of this but I’ll say it once more:
If #omicron turns out to be as dangerous as it well might and we once again do little to prepare for it with the time we have, then we are compounding the biggest collective political failure I have witnessed in my lifetime.

In Germany right now we have low vaccine uptake and high case numbers, we have full ICUs, overwhelmed labs and overworked health departments.
This is not where we want to be if #Omicron boosts this pandemic…

And for those asking (and for politicians), yesterday’s @ECDC_EU brief includes more than three pages titled “Options for response”:

ecdc.europa.eu/sites/default/…

@ECDC_EU VACCINATIONS
"Until these initial studies for the Omicron VOC are available, the focus should be on reinforcing the vaccination efforts to close immunity gaps in order to protect the population and to ensure equitable coverage across countries and regions in Europe."

@ECDC_EU "Booster doses will increase immunity in the population and sustain transmission control beyond the immediate impact of implementing NPIs, which will be particularly important in light of the emergence of more transmissible variants with potentially reduced vaccine effectiveness"

@ECDC_EU NPIs and HOSPITALS:
"efforts should continue focusing on strengthening healthcare capacity to manage potentially high numbers of COVID-19 patients."

@ECDC_EU CONTACT TRACING:
"Contact tracing can help slow the establishment of the Omicron VOC in the country”
Contact tracing of s#omicron cases "should be prioritised and efforts made to trace and follow up both high-risk and low-risk exposure contacts in a timely manner"

@ECDC_EU "For probable or confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron VOC infection, the enhanced contact tracing measures as set out in the ECDC contact tracing guidance should be considered.”
That includes backward contact tracing and stricter management of contacts

@ECDC_EU TRAVEL
Require a negative test and quarantine passengers from affected areas (probably most of the world soon)
"Proof of vaccination does not exempt from testing and quarantine due to the uncertainty about the effectiveness of the currently available vaccines against this VOC."

NPIs and HOSPITALS:
"efforts should continue focusing on strengthening healthcare capacity to manage potentially high numbers of COVID-19 patients."

CONTACT TRACING:
"Contact tracing can help slow the establishment of the Omicron VOC in the country”
Contact tracing of s#omicron cases "should be prioritised and efforts made to trace and follow up both high-risk and low-risk exposure contacts in a timely manner"

"For probable or confirmed cases of SARS-CoV-2 Omicron VOC infection, the enhanced contact tracing measures as set out in the ECDC contact tracing guidance should be considered.”
That includes backward contact tracing and stricter management of contacts

TRAVEL
Require a negative test and quarantine passengers from affected areas (probably most of the world soon)
"Proof of vaccination does not exempt from testing and quarantine due to the uncertainty about the effectiveness of the currently available vaccines against this VOC."

Bans will probably just buy 2 weeks of time, but:
"Restrictions at this point in time may buy countries valuable time to better understand the characteristics of the Omicron VOC"

Remember though:
given omicron’s speed "it is likely that within the coming weeks the effectiveness of travel-related measures will decrease and countries should prepare for a rapid and measured de-escalation of such measures."