Over 70% of nations have COVID-19 response plan: WHO

GENEVA

More than 70% of countries have a COVID-19 national preparedness and response plan, and 89% have lab testing capacity for the novel coronavirus, the World Health Organization (WHO) chief said Thursday.

Dr. Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus addressed international diplomats in Geneva about global preparedness to fight the coronavirus pandemic.

He said that more than 70% of countries have event-based surveillance for COVID-19, and 68% have a "multi-sectoral" partner coordination mechanism.

"Of course, this is not enough, and we expect that all countries should be ready, whether they have cases or not," he said.

He noted that only half of countries have a national infection prevention and control program and WASH -- water, sanitation, and hygiene -- standards in all healthcare facilities.

"For the first time, China has reported no domestic cases," said Tedros, describing it as "an amazing achievement."

The Johns Hopkins University of Medicine Coronavirus Resource Center of the U.S. reported that worldwide there are more than 236,000 cases and over 9,700 deaths confirmed.

The WHO said only half of the world's countries had reported they have a clinical referral system in place for COVID-19.

"Considering what we observed lately, when health services are overwhelmed, preparing the system, I think preparing the system, especially referrals, will be very important," said Tedros.

He referred to the first vaccine trial for COVID-19 that has also started.

That was "just 60 days after the genetic sequence of the virus was shared, which is an unprecedented scientific triumph, and the first person was enrolled in the trial in the U.S., thanks to NIH [The National Institutes of Health], two days ago.

"We hope this will help us as an additional solution in the right against COVID-19," he said.

Tedros also said the WHO needs financial support for a global security stockpile of supplies and medicines for the most vulnerable countries.

The new coronavirus known as COVID-19 emerged in Wuhan, China last December, and has spread to at least 160 countries and territories. The World Health Organization declared the outbreak a pandemic.

Over 84,500 have recovered so far, according to data compiled by Johns Hopkins University.

Despite the rising number of cases, most who become infected suffer only mild symptoms and recover.