Roughly one in 10 people may have been infected with the coronavirus, leaving the vast majority of the world's population vulnerable to the Covid-19 disease it causes, the World Health Organization said on Monday.
Mike Ryan, the WHO's top emergency expert, was addressing the agency's Executive Board, where the United States made a thinly veiled swipe at China for what it called a "failure" to provide accurate and timely information on the outbreak.
But Zhang Yang of China's National Health Commission, said: "China has always been transparent and responsible to fulfil our international obligations." China maintained close contacts with all levels of the UN health agency, she added.
Ryan said that outbreaks were surging in parts of southeast Asia and that cases and deaths were on the rise in parts of Europe and the eastern Mediterranean region.
"Our current best estimates tell us about 10% of the global population may have been infected by this virus. It varies depending on countries, it varies from urban to rural, it varies depending on groups. But what it does mean is that the vast majority of the world remains at risk," Ryan said.
"We are now heading into a difficult period. The disease continues to spread," he said.
Impact on mental health
The Covid-19 pandemic is having a "devastating impact" on mental health services globally, the WHO said, ahead of a large fundraising push.
It warned that mental health had been overlooked in the crisis, pointing to a survey conducted between June and August that revealed severe disruptions to services in 93 countries.
While 83% of the 130 countries surveyed had included mental health in their coronavirus pandemic response plans only 17% had actually set up the full funding required, it said.
More than 35 million cases
Across the world, more than 35.2 million cases of the novel coronavirus have been officially diagnosed.
It has killed at least 1,037,971 people since emerging in China in late 2019, according to an AFP tally at 6pm yesterday based on official sources.
The United States has the highest death toll, with 209,734, followed by Brazil with 146,352, India 102,685, Mexico 79,088 and Britain 42,350.
Britain plans 'adult-only' vaccination
Health authorities in Britain, which has ordered tens of millions of vaccine doses from pharmaceutical research programs, are drawing up a program that prioritizes elderly people and at-risk workers.
"There's going to be no vaccination of people under 18," vaccine taskforce chairwoman Kate Bingham tells the Financial Times. "It's an adult-only vaccine..."
The United Kingdom passed 500,000 confirmed coronavirus infections on Sunday, in the latest milestone for the European country worst-hit by the pandemic.
Towards new Irish lockdown?
Coalition government leaders in Ireland meet the chief medical officer to discuss a nationwide lockdown after government experts recommend ramping up coronavirus restrictions to curb a surge of new cases.
The National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) recommended late on Sunday that all of Ireland move to the highest level of Covid-19 restrictions, mirroring those issued during the original lockdown in March.
EU Commission chief isolating
The president of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen says she will self-isolate for a day after learning she had met someone during a Portugal visit infected with Covid-19.
Last month the president of the European Council, Charles Michel, was forced to postpone a European leaders' summit for a week after a security guard in his team tested positive.