Summary : | Despite the decrease in the number of COVID-19 positive and death rates since the Fourth Wave, Pakistan’s healthcare system is poised to undergo significant stress due to the emergence of a new COVID-19 variant ‘Omicron’ and the simultaneous outbreak of the Dengue epidemic. At the time of this release, two positive cases have been reported in Karachi and Islamabad, while 12 new suspected cases have been reported from Balochistan. The system has remained under the additional burden of the reported 48,906 infections with 183 deaths between January and September 2021 from the Dengue outbreak. The government is urged to adopt a comprehensive and proactive response to maintain control and safeguard the population against the threat posed by the Omicron variant. |