When cases increase and transmission accelerates, it’s more likely that new dangerous and more transmissible variants emerge, which can spread more easily or cause more severe illness.
Based on what we know so far, vaccines are proving effective against existing variants, especially at preventing severe disease, hospitalization and death. However, some variants are having a slight impact on the ability of vaccines to guard against mild disease and infection.
Vaccines are likely staying effective against variants because of the broad immune response they cause, which means that virus changes or mutations are unlikely to make vaccines completely ineffective.
WHO continues to constantly review the evidence and will update its guidance as we find out more. For the latest updates on what we know about the COVID-19 variants, read our latest weekly epidemiological updates and our explainer on ‘the effects of virus variants on COVID-19 vaccines’.
One of the best ways of guarding against new variants is to continue applying tried-and-tested public health measures and rolling out vaccines. All COVID-19 vaccines approved for emergency use listing by WHO have been thoroughly tested and proven to provide a high degree of protection against serious illness and death. As stronger virus variants emerge, it’s important to take your vaccine when it’s your turn.