Countries will now suppress data on new variants, says South African health expert

Professor Alex Van Den Heever, Wits University. Pic/Wits University; (far left) citizens get vaccine shots at BYL Nair Hospital. Primary strategy to control spread of Omicron remains vaccination, says Prof Heever. File pic

After the Omicron variant was identified by researchers in South Africa, the backlash of the global players - especially the USA, UK and EU - prompted questions about the situation on the ground in the country. mid-day reached out to public health and health policy expert Professor Alex Van Den Heever, Chair of Social Security Systems Administration and Management Studies in the School of Governance at the Wits University, Johannesburg, on what the situation is, what should be the way forward and more.

When the Centre for Epidemic Response and Innovation led by experts from KRISP - Kwazulu-Natal Research Innovation and Sequencing Platform in South Africa first identified the new variant of COVID-19, named Omicron by the WHO, other countries came down on South Africa and instituted travel bans, instead of lauding the country's scientific community for being alert, detecting the variant quickly and sharing the data transparently.

Edited excerpts.

After the KRISP COVID research lab first identified the new variant, the world pounced on South Africa as the origin of this variant. What is your view on this?
This will have a chilling effect on countries releasing information on variants of concern timely. Consequences of this move may impact countries' ability to introduce sensible public health responses to dangerous airborne pathogens timely. Countries will now hold back, waiting for the problem to become widespread before releasing information. It is clear from news conferences held by politicians from the US, UK and EU that they are unconcerned about what they have done.

Beneficiaries get jabs at BYL Nair Hospital. Dr Heever has stressed on the need to introduce booster doses for all. File pic

With a large number of people testing positive for Omicron, are you expecting a larger fifth wave in the coming weeks? And how ready is the South African government for this?
It is clear that the predicted summer wave is happening. Each wave in South Africa has involved a different variant. The current wave is probably 70 per cent Omicron and 30 per cent Delta. It is expected that the number of infections will match previous waves. What we are uncertain of at this point is whether past infections and vaccinations will impact the severity of illness and deaths. It is still too early to tell. One observation that is emerging starkly is that hospital admissions are predominantly made up of the unvaccinated.

Can you elaborate on the control measures taken?
Non-pharmaceutical interventions are not strict at present but wearing a mask is required. Indoor gatherings are restricted, but not severely. Formal sector businesses, universities and public organisations still allow staff to work from home, and in-person meetings are discouraged, but not prohibited. There is, however, a strong movement to introduce vaccine mandates to boost vaccinations. South Africa is not going to introduce economically harmful restrictions again and is presently relying on the vaccination strategy.

Do you think the Omicron story is blown out of proportion by advocates demanding equality of vaccines for Africa and Latin America?
The hysterical reaction to the Omicron variant is disappointing and suggests that countries are not learning. What has been shown is that COVID cannot be kept out of a country with partial travel bans, and that complete travel bans are unsustainable. It appears that the US, UK and EU believe that they can insulate themselves from the pandemic, and therefore they don't need to address the global risk. This is both a miscalculation and concerning at a moral level. I do expect that this will impact how countries choose to cooperate in future.

Clearly global pandemic resilience cannot rely on these countries and we will have to pursue cooperative arrangements independently of these countries and regions.

Several children are reported to have been infected with Omicron. Are you expecting a severe disease pattern during this wave?
While the infection among children is not new, we are seeing more severe cases among them. But it is far too early to tell whether this represents something novel, as the hospital admissions are still low at this stage. We will get a clearer picture in around two weeks.

Your public guidance to the rest of the world including India to control the spread of this variant?
The primary strategy remains vaccination and there is some limited evidence to suggest that existing vaccines may help avoid severe illness and mortality in the case of Omicron. It is also clear that reinfection and transmission will happen among those previously infected and vaccinated. The unvaccinated are therefore extremely vulnerable as they can be infected by the vaccinated.

The investment in the vaccination strategy has to be global and solidaristic rather than just country specific, and should include introduction of booster doses and updated vaccines for all. What has become clear is that nationalistic approaches to a pandemic of this nature cannot work and will prolong the pandemic for all.

70
Estimated percentage of Omicron in ongoing SA 4th wave