World Health Organisation (WHO) has welcomed the overarching recommendations of The Lancet COVID-19 Commission’s report on “Lessons for the future from the COVID-19 pandemic,” which align with their commitment to stronger global, regional and national pandemic preparedness, prevention, readiness and response, an official statement has said. At the same time, there are several key omissions and misinterpretations in the report, not least regarding the public health emergency of international concern (PHEIC) and the speed and scope of WHO’s actions, the official communique has said.
The pandemic is not over, though the end is in sight, and WHO continues its response, while laying a stronger foundation for the future, it said. The Commission did not, however, convey the full arc of WHO’s immediate, multi-year, life-saving response, the statement has said. According to the statement on December 30, 2019, WHO received the first alerts of cases of pneumonia of unknown cause in Wuhan, China, and notified the International Health Regulation IHR focal point, seeking further information from Chinese health authorities the next day.