Today, @WHOWPRO held a press conference on #COVID19 across the Western Pacific.
WHO colleagues Drs Tamano Matsui, Socorro Escalante & I discussed sharp rises in cases, future scenarios, the people who give us hope and this critical moment.
More than 19 months into the pandemic, 6 million people in the Western Pacific have been infected and more than 83,000 have lost their lives.
Until a few weeks ago, our region had fared comparatively well, with around 2% of global cases and deaths.
But…
Our Region is at a critical juncture in the #COVID19 outbreak.
Most cases are still in China, but the virus has now been confirmed in many places.
We must continue efforts to contain its spread, but it’s also time all countries prepare for the possibility of wider transmission.
While countries continue to focus on containment, there are clusters of cases with no link to China & latest info suggests virus may be more transmissible than early data suggested. #COVID19
Jan 29, 2020 • 12 tweets • 11 min read
Yesterday I visited Beijing with @DrTedros and @DrMikeRyan to discuss the novel #coronavirus outbreak. We met with President Xi, the Minister of Foreign Affairs Wang Yi, and Health Minister Ma Xiaowei. who.int/news-room/deta…@DrTedros@DrMikeRyan We received detailed briefings on the latest situation & measures being taken in 🇨🇳. I would really like to appreciate the people of China, especially health care workers caring for sick patients, and the 🇨🇳 authorities for their best efforts to control this outbreak.
