The World Health Organization declared that COVID-19 no longer qualifies as a global emergency. The announcement was symbolic. After the worst of the Omicron wave passed in January 2022, restrictions gradually fell away, never to return in most places.
However, thousands of people are dying from the virus every week, and millions of others report that they are still suffering from debilitating, long-term effects from the disease. The pandemic had shattered businesses, exacerbated political divisions, led to the spread of misinformation and plunged millions into poverty. “COVID has changed our world and it has changed us,” WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said. the virus has caused an estimated 764 million cases globally and about 5 billion people have received at least one dose of vaccine. Most recently, WHO has been struggling to investigate the origins of the coronavirus. The origins of the virus are still a hotly contested mystery. In the U.S., President Biden now travels frequently and hosts large gatherings in the White House. Many Americans still remain cautious. the U.S. is set to end its national public health emergency on Thursday.
