GENEVA (AP) - An advisory panel of the World Health Organization classified a new COVID-19 variant first detected in South Africa as a highly transmissible virus of concern and named it "omicron" under its Greek-letter system.The announcement Friday from the United Nations health agency marks the first time in months that WHO has classified a COVID-19 variant as such.
The delta variant, which has become the world’s most prevalent, is in the same category.The World Health Organization’s COVID-19 Technical Lead urged people to take steps to reduce transmission and get vaccinated on Thursday, November 25, following the discovery of a new variant of the virus in South Africa.