The World Health Organization has recommended nations lift or ease their existing COVID-19-related travel restrictions to minimize economic and social stress related to the pandemic. This announcement was made on 19th January 2022, Wednesday by the WHO’s International Health Regulations Emergency Committee on Covid-19 following the most recent meeting.
“The failure of travel restrictions introduced after the detection and reporting of Omicron variant to limit the international spread of Omicron demonstrates the ineffectiveness of such measures over time. Travel measures should be based on risk assessments and avoid placing the financial burden on international travelers in accordance with Article 40 of the IHR,” it said in a statement.
It further said that the state parties should consider a risk-based approach to the “facilitation of international travel by lifting or modifying measures, such as testing and/or quarantine requirements, when appropriate.” “Recognize all vaccines that have received WHO Emergency Use Listing and all heterologous vaccine combinations as per SAGE recommendations, including in the context of international travel.”
At present, the WHO has approved 10 COVID-19 vaccines, including Covovax, Moderna, Comirnaty, Janssen, Astrazeneca, Covishield, Covaxin, Sinovac, and Sinopharm. Moreover, World Health Organization has recommended two new drugs for treating Covid-19, the first drug baricitnib for patients with severe Covid-19 and monoclonal for treating mild and moderate Covid-19 patients.
