The National Taskforce for Covid-19 Prevention and Control says the country is on high alert for the new Omicron variant.
The Taskforce said yesterday that the World Health Organization (WHO) had warned countries of the new B1.1.529 variant of Covid-19, dubbed “Omicron,” which was first recorded in South Africa on 24 November.
According to a statement by the Taskforce yesterday, the new variant could be much more transmissible than previous variants of the virus.
The WHO says this variant has a large number of mutations, some of which are concerning, while preliminary evidence suggests an increased risk of reinfection with this variant. The number of cases of Omicron appears to be increasing in almost all provinces in South Africa.
The Laos Taskforce has urged residents to take extra precautions against Covid-19, saying that the variant could appear in the population at any time. It has also urged everyone to be vaccinated as soon as is possible.
Meanwhile, the Taskforce says it will begin testing to see which variants are present among Covid-19 patients in Laos.
The government and relevant authorities will hold a meeting to discuss the Omicron variant and decide if new measures should be implemented in response to the threat.
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