WHO says measures used against delta should work for omicron

By JIM GOMEZ
Associated Press

MANILA, Philippines (AP) — World Health Organization officials say that the measures used to counter the delta variant should remain the foundation for fighting the coronavirus pandemic, even in the face of the new omicron version of the virus. They acknowledged Friday that the travel restrictions imposed by some countries may buy time. While about three dozen countries worldwide have reported omicron infections, the numbers so far are small outside of South Africa. That country is facing a rapid rise in new COVID-19 cases and the new variant may be becoming dominant there. Much remains unclear about omicron, including whether it is more contagious, as some health authorities suspect, whether it makes people more seriously ill, or whether it can evade vaccine protection.