The World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Bank (WB) have said more than half a billion people are at risk of extreme poverty due to the coronavirus pandemic. It is reported by TASS with reference to the reports of the organizations.
It is noted that COVID-19 has led to disruptions in the provision of medical services and has caused excessive tension in the health care system. As a result, for the first time in ten years, the immunization of the population decreased and the death rate from malaria and tuberculosis increased.
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The WHO and the World Bank stressed that the pandemic caused the worst economic crisis since the 1930s, making it more difficult for people to pay for treatment. The authors of the reports suggest that financial difficulties will intensify, given the growth of poverty, falling incomes and difficulties of states in obtaining taxes.
The head of the World Health Organization, Tedros Adanom Ghebreyesus, called on countries around the world to resume and accelerate steps aimed at citizens’ access to health services, including increasing spending on health care and social support.
“We now need to build health systems that are strong enough to withstand shocks such as a future pandemic, and we need to follow that path towards universal health coverage,” he stressed.
Earlier, WHO published the latest data on the danger of the omicron strain. It is noted that it is able to spread faster than the delta variant, however, the disease caused by it is more easily tolerated. According to the organization, by December 9, cases of infection with the omicron strain were detected in 63 countries of the world.
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