Recent reports indicate that the World Health Organization (WHO) is concerned about the increasing number of severe cases of COVID-19 in China. WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus revealed that the organization needs more information to make an assessment of the situation on the ground. While the number of deaths related to COVID-19 has decreased dramatically since its peak, it is still too early to conclude that the pandemic is over.
Scientists have warned that the unchecked spread of COVID-19 in China could lead to new variants of the virus, which could destabilize the progress made globally to contain the pandemic. WHO emergencies chief Dr. Michael Ryan stated that the vaccination rate in China for people over 60 is lower than in many other countries, and the efficacy of Chinese-made vaccines is only around 50%, which is not enough protection for the country’s large population with many vulnerable people. Additionally, Ryan suggested that China’s definition of COVID deaths is too narrow, and that other countries such as Britain define any COVID death as someone who has died within 28 days of testing positive for the virus. Reports show that the official number of COVID deaths are a major underestimate, with WHO estimating in May that there were nearly 15 million coronavirus deaths worldwide, more than double the official toll of 6 million.