Washington Post Editorial Board Warns Pandemic Is Far From Over
- Oops!Something went wrong.Please try again later.
The Washington Post’s editorial board has warned that the “worst virus variant just arrived” and the COVID-19 pandemic is far from finished.
“The coronavirus is speeding up once again, mutating, evading immunity and still on the march,” the newspaper warned in an editorial published Thursday. “The arrival of subvariant BA.5 should be a reminder that the finish line in this race is nowhere to be seen.”
BA.5 is the latest subvariant of omicron, the coronavirus variant that caused a huge wave of infection around the world this past fall and winter.
The Post cited Eric Topol, a professor of molecular medicine at Scripps Research, who said the latest subvariant is “the worst version of the virus that we’ve seen.”
“It takes immune escape, already extensive, to the next level, and, as a function of that, enhanced transmissibility,” he wrote.
As the virus has evolved, it has improved its ability to transmit, grow and evade the body’s immune system, Topol said. The subvariants BA.4 and BA.5 are reportedly “the most immune-evasive variants” seen in multiple studies to date.
It’s not clear yet whether the new variant will lead to more serious illness. But, as it spreads, the Post urged mitigation measures like wearing face masks, better air ventilation and avoiding crowded indoor places.
And going forward, it raises the question scientists are still working to answer: will new vaccine boosters need to target the new variants?
Read the editorial in The Washington Post.
This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.
