Acute phase of pandemic could end in 2022 – WHO

GENEVA (Reuters) – The acute phase of the COVID-19 pandemic could end next year but the coronavirus will not disappear, the World Health Organization’s Mike Ryan said on Wednesday.

Ryan, the WHO’s top emergency expert, also said it was too early to draw conclusions on the severity of the Omicron variant until it had spread more widely to older people.

(Writing by Keith Weir; Editing by Alex Richardson)