Dr. David Nabarro, the World Health Organization’s special envoy, said Sunday countries need to be prepared for the longterm threat of coronavirus.
He warned that countries should only start to let up on their social distancing and lockdown procedures when they have the capacity to track and isolate new cases as they arrive.
“We think it’s going to be a virus that stalks the human race for quite a long time to come, until we can all have a vaccine that will protect us, and that there will be small outbreaks that will emerge sporadically,” Dr. Nabarro said on NBC’s “Meet the Press.”
“The key for this particular virus is that every community as a kind of defensive shield, can pick up cases as soon as they appear, isolate them, and stop outbreaks from developing,” he added.
Across the globe, there are more than 1.8 million COVID-19 confirmed cases and 112,00 deaths, according to data compiled by John Hopkins University.
• Gabriella Muñoz can be reached at gmunoz@washingtontimes.com.
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