World Health Organization director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus warned during a press conference Wednesday that the circulation of both the Omicron and Delta variants of COVID-19 "is leading to a tsunami of cases."
Why it matters: Surging caseloads will continue to put "immense pressure on exhausted health workers and health systems on the brink of collapse," Tedros said.
The big picture: The WHO director reiterated his call for vaccines to be distributed more equitably around the world and warned that booster shots in wealthy nations could disadvantage poorer ones, Reuters reported.
Tedros urged states to make a “new year’s resolution” to vaccinate 70% of their populations by July 2022, after nearly 100 member states failed to reach the goal of vaccinating 40% of their populations by the end of 2021, per AP.
What he's saying: "Delta and Omicron are now twin threats that are driving up cases to record numbers, which again, is leading to spikes in hospitalizations and deaths," Tedros said.
The bottom line: "This virus will continue to evolve and threaten our health system if we do not improve the collective response," he added.
