BOGOTA, May 2 (Xinhua) -- The COVID-19 pandemic is far from over, so people should still stay vigilant and continue with anti-pandemic measures, a Colombian expert has said.
"The pandemic is not over. SARS-CoV-2 will mutate permanently and new variants may emerge," Carlos Enrique Trillos, senior professor at the School of Medicine and Health Sciences of Colombia's Del Rosario University, told Xinhua in a recent interview.
On April 25, Colombian President Ivan Duque announced that the country will lift the mandatory use of face masks on May 1, while the COVID-19 health emergency will be extended until June 30.
The mask restriction will be removed in closed spaces, except health centers, elderly homes, transportation and closed spaces within educational facilities, and only in municipalities with at least 70 percent of the population fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and 40 percent with a booster dose, Duque said.
"The use of masks in closed spaces has not been totally eliminated and shouldn't be seen as a massive nationwide measure," the Colombian expert said. "There are cities such as Medellin, Cali and Bucaramanga that do not meet the 40-percent booster dose requirement."
"Projections show that there could be a slight increase in the number of cases in July, which may be due to multiple factors," Trillos said.
"We must not be careless. We must continue with measures such as frequent handwashing, good ventilation in closed spaces and avoidance of crowds," he said.
The expert recommended that people with comorbidities, older adults and those who have not been vaccinated continue to wear face masks, while urging everyone to get fully vaccinated.
"With variants such as Omicron and the BA.2 sublineage, it is very difficult to talk about collective immunity, since a much higher vaccination coverage is required, above 90 percent, as several studies have indicated," he said.
"We cannot yet speak of the end of the pandemic. This is an issue that must be handled with caution, as indicated by the World Health Organization," he added. ■
