A
The World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the outbreak of the novel coronavirus has caused a global public health emergency after the spread of the disease across the world. The WHO made the decision in its third meeting about the coronavirus, after it decided not to take such a step in the first two meetings.
Officially called a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC), it is considered to be a public health risk through the international spread of disease. It suggests a serious, sudden and unusual situation in which the world must act quickly.
Since 2009, there have been a few global health emergencies, including the 2009 swine flu pandemic (猪流感) and the 2014 outbreak of cholera in West Africa.
The novel coronavirus has got attention because of its similarity to SARS which killed about 800 people across the world in 2002-2003. So far, the novel coronavirus has spread all over the world with more than 2 million people infected and nearly 200,000 people have been dead.
Its declaration could cause trade and travel restriction. Those who have made holiday plans might have their plans affected in some parts of the world.
The WHO said its greatest worry was the potential for the virus to spread to countries with weaker health systems, who might not be able to handle it.
“We are all in this together and we can only stop it together,” said the WHO’s Director General, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
【文章大意】这是一篇新闻报道。世卫组织宣布,新冠病毒为全球突发公共卫生事件,它呼吁全球携手应对这一突发事件。
21. What does the underlined phrase “take such a step” refer to in the first paragraph?
A. Spread the coronavirus across the world.
B. Declare the coronavirus a global public health emergency.
C. Hold the third meeting about the coronavirus.
D. Restrict trade and travel across the world.
【解析】选B。词义猜测题。根据第一段内容可知,新冠病毒爆发之后世卫组织在第三次会议上将其宣布为全球突发公共卫生事件,而在前两次会议上世卫组织并没有采取这样的措施,由此可知,“take such a step”指的就是将新冠病毒宣布为全球突发公共卫生事件。
22. Which of the following statements is true?
A. The 2009 swine flu pandemic was a global public health emergency.
B. SARS killed about 800 people across the world in 2009.
C. The novel coronavirus has fewer cases than SARS.
D. The spread of the coronavirus has no risk.
【解析】选A。推理判断题。根据第三段内容可知,自2009年以来,全球出现了一些突发卫生事件,包括2009年的猪流感和2014年的西非霍乱疫情。由此可知,2009的猪流感属于全球突发公共卫生事件。
23. What could the declaration of global public health emergency cause?
A. Bigger outbreak of the novel coronavirus.
B. Trade and travel restriction.
C. A weaker health system.
D. Immediate stop of the novel coronavirus.
【解析】选B。细节理解题。根据倒数第三段第一句Its declaration could cause trade and travel restriction. 可知,世卫组织的这一声明可能会使贸易和旅游受到限制。
