After more than 20 months of strict border controls and restrictions on daily life, many countries in the region had tentatively started to loosen up and live with Covid — months after their European and North American counterparts fully reopened.
But it took only a matter of days to change that.
Scientists in the United States say it will take at least two weeks to know more about how the variant impacts vaccine efficacy and Covid treatments. As public health experts wait for the data, governments across the Asia-Pacific region aren’t taking any risks. Many are acting quickly over concerns the new Omicron variant could spread into their territories, even in places with already-strict border rules or high vaccination rates.
Experts say that’s understandable. But, they say countries may need to adjust their expectations of what living with Covid looks like and improve vaccine equity as the virus becomes endemic.
“Initially, we thought we lived in this black and white world in terms of the possibility of living with Covid or without it, but that choice is kind of going away with it becoming endemic,” said Renu Singh, research assistant professor with Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, who works on the politics of public health during Covid-19.
Some countries in Asia delay reopening
Japan initially asked all airlines to suspend reservations — potentially stranding Japanese citizens overseas — but later rescinded the request after complaints. Japanese citizens and foreign residents with a reentry permit are still generally allowed to reenter Japan, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, though they will have to complete mandatory government quarantines from certain countries.
The new rules come just weeks after Japan showed signs of opening up, reducing its mandatory…
Source : cnn
