The Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) announced Wednesday that the coronavirus strain known as COVID-19 is now officially classified as a pandemic. The director also noted that although this distinction “does not change WHO’s assessment of the threat posed by this virus,” it should also be recognized that “we have never before seen a pandemic that can be controlled.”
WHO has previously avoided using the term “pandemic” in conjunction with COVID-19 throughout the various stages of the outbreak. The Director made a similar statement to the press just two days ago and avoided the term, referring to COVID-19 exclusively as an epidemic and outbreak. They justified this policy under the rationale that the word pandemic itself “can cause unreasonable fear, or unjustified acceptance that the fight is over, leading to unnecessary suffering and death.” However, WHO has grown “concerned both by the alarming levels of spread and severity, and by the alarming levels of inaction” and has decided to reverse this policy in the hopes that it will spark stronger action in the international community.
