EU urges more checks for Covid-19 variants given surge in China
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European Health Commissioner Stella Kyriakides said the bloc should be “very vigilant”.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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BRUSSELS - The European Union should consider immediately scaling up genomic sequencing of Covid-19 infections and monitoring of waste water, including from airports, to detect any new variants given the virus surge in China,
In a letter to health ministers of the EU’s 27 members, Stella Kyriakides said the bloc should be “very vigilant”.
China is lifting travel restrictions on Jan 8
Ms Kyriakides advised ministers in the letter, which was reviewed by Reuters, to assess their current practices on genomic sequencing of the coronavirus “as an immediate step”.
If sequencing has been scaled down, countries might want to consider scaling it back up, she wrote.
She added it is important to continue or start surveillance of waste water, including sewage from key airports.
If a new variant appears, the bloc needs to detect it early to be able to react quickly, the commissioner wrote.
The commissioner’s letter, dated Dec 29, followed an online meeting of over 100 representatives from EU members, EU health agencies and the World Health Organization to discuss how to deal with the outbreak in China.
Health experts are expected to hold a crisis response meeting next week, according to an EU source.
Italy has urged the rest of the European Union to follow its lead
But most EU members have said they see no need to do so.
Ms Kyriakides said some EU members have proposed measures such as the random testing of travellers.
Spain said on Friday it would join other countries setting new restrictions
The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control says it does not currently recommend measures on travellers from China.
It said the variants circulating in China are already in the European Union.
The agency added that EU citizens have relatively high vaccination levels and the potential imported infections are low compared to the number of daily infections in the EU, with health care systems currently coping. REUTERS
