World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that roughly 1 in 10 people worldwide may have been infected by the coronavirus — more than 20 times the number of confirmed cases — and warned of a difficult period ahead.
It’s an estimate that’s far higher than the total of global confirmed cases reported by governments. At the same time, it would mean that most of the world’s population is still vulnerable to getting infected and this pandemic is far from over, the WHO’s head of emergencies Dr. Michael Ryan said.
Although Ryan did not elaborate on the estimate, Dr. Margaret Harris, a WHO spokeswoman, said it was based on an average of antibody studies conducted around the world. She said the estimated 90 percent of people remaining without infection means the virus has “opportunity” to spread further “if we don’t take action to stop it” such as by contact-tracing and tracking of cases by health officials.
