How to know which variant of covid-19 an infected person has?
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(CNN) --
How will the pandemic end?
Almost two years after it was officially declared by the World Health Organization (WHO), we are still not close to knowing the answer.
The highly transmissible omicron variant of the coronavirus has taken the world by storm since it was first detected in South Africa in November.
But the fact that it is less likely to cause severe illness than previous coronavirus variants has led to strong speculation about whether it could mark a turning point, or conclusion, of the pandemic.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus dismissed that theory on Tuesday, saying: "This pandemic is far from over."
Omicron continues to infect the world at an astonishing rate, with more than 18 million cases recorded in the past week alone, according to the WHO.
The number of covid-19 patients in the United States has reached a record number and continues to rise, overwhelming hospitals.
From Australia to Germany, infections are reaching unprecedented levels, putting huge pressure on health systems.
"Omicron may be less severe, on average, of course, but the narrative that it's a mild disease is misleading, harms the overall response and costs more lives," Tedros said.
"Make no mistake, ómicron is causing hospitalizations and deaths, with even less severe cases flooding healthcare facilities. The virus is circulating too heavily and many remain vulnerable."
Mass closure in Beijing for an omicron variant case 3:46
Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to President Joe Biden, shared a similar message the day before.
Fauci was asked at the World Economic Forum online if the coronavirus could move this year from the pandemic level to the endemic level, which is when a disease has a constant presence in a population but does not affect an alarming number of people.
He replied: "I would hope so, but that would only be possible if no other variant appears that eludes the immune response."
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Fauci added that the world is still in the first of what he described as five pandemic phases: "the truly pandemic phase," in which the world is "very negatively impacted," followed by slowdown, control, elimination and eradication.
Omicron could mark the end of the covid-19 pandemic phase, unless a certain scenario occurs, says Fauci
Europe's strategy
And yet, some governments seem to ignore these phases, resigning themselves to the virus indefinitely destroying their populations.
According to his logic, "we have to learn to live with this virus."
But what exactly is that, and how long will it last?
In some European countries, the pandemic strategy continues to decline towards fewer mitigation measures, reduced quarantine periods and fewer travel restrictions.
In fact, in places like Spain, people think of treating the omicron variant more like the flu, despite public health officials, including the WHO, warning against that approach.
“I think that we must assess the evolution of covid to an endemic disease, from the pandemic that we have faced until now,” the president of the Spanish government, Pedro Sánchez, said last week.
The rise of omicron in Spain puts pressure on hospitals 2:47
In the UK, which experimented with a controversial "herd immunity" strategy at the start of the pandemic and has continued to draw attention for its "keep calm and carry on" attitude to the virus, a wave of omicrons threatened to put the country's health service on a "war footing". But now that the wave appears to have reached its peak — 93,890 new cases were reported on Tuesday, up from 129,544 the same day last week — the limited "Plan B" restrictions imposed in December, which included the use of masks on public transport, will be relaxed next week.
"Decisions on next steps remain very balanced," Downing Street said in a statement, stressing that "the omicron variant continues to pose a significant threat and the pandemic is not over."
Covid-19WHO
