Riyadh— The Saudi Ministry of Health has ruled out imposing stricter lockdown measures as the coronavirus variant Omicron spreads.
On Monday, the ministry’s spokesman, Dr. Muhammad Al-Abdel Ali, confirmed the news on “YaHalaShow” on the Rotana Khalijiya channel. He said that the reason is that the effects of the pandemic are not the same as at the start of the outbreak early in 2020.
He noted that the Kingdom had made great strides in confronting COVID-19, with high immunity rates acquired through vaccination.
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Omicron is the fastest-spreading virus in history, and the spokesman indicated; most of the infections reported were among the unvaccinated or those who did not complete their vaccination.
The spread of Omicron will decrease soon, especially after the re-imposition of health preventive measures, and studies have proven that the third dose protects against infections.
During the interview, the spokesperson said that the drugs to treat COVID-19 are still under study and did not expect vaccines to be stopped even with medications.
Ninety-five percent of Saudis from the targeted age group in the Kingdom completed their doses. While of the total population of Saudi Arabia, 75% have been vaccinated.
The Spokesman concluded his interview by saying, “Do not be affected by the false information. Do not let seeing the daily increase in numbers of infected cases cause you to fear and panic; and I call on everyone to complete taking their doses and adhere to preventive measures and precautions.”
