Denmark removes most COVID-19 restrictions

COPENHAGEN, Denmark — Denmark on Tuesday became one of the first countries in the European Union to remove most pandemic restrictions, as the Scandinavian country no longer considers the COVID-19 outbreak to be “a socially critical disease.”

The reason is that even though the omicron variant is booming in Denmark, it does not impose a heavy burden on the health system and the country has a high vaccination rate, officials said.

Denmark, a country of 5.8 million people, has recorded more than 50,000 daily cases on average in recent weeks while the number of people in hospital intensive care units has fallen.

The head of the Danish Health Authority, Søren Brostrøm, told Danish broadcaster TV2 his focus was on the number of people in intensive care units, rather than the number of infections. He said that number had “fallen and fallen and is incredibly low”. He said that 32 of coronavirus patients are in intensive care. A few weeks ago it was 80.

The most visible restriction that is disappearing is the wearing of face masks, which are no longer mandatory on public transport, in shops and for customers standing in indoor areas of restaurants. Authorities only recommend wearing a mask in hospitals, health nursing homes and retirement homes.

Another restriction that is no longer required is the digital pass used to enter nightclubs, cafes, party buses and sitting inside in restaurants.

“I dare not say this is a final farewell to the restrictions. We don’t know what will happen to the fall. Whether there will be a new variant,” Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen told the radio. danish.

Health authorities have urged Danes to get tested regularly to maintain epidemic surveillance and if necessary, “react quickly if necessary”, as Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said last week.

The Danish government has warned that Denmark could see an increase in infections in the coming weeks and said a fourth vaccine may be needed.

The restrictions were initially introduced in July but were lifted around 10 weeks later after a successful vaccination campaign. They were reintroduced when infections soared.

In 2020, Denmark became one of the first European countries to close schools due to the pandemic and send all non-critical public employees home. In neighboring Finland, COVID-19 restrictions will end this month, with Prime Minister Sanna Marin saying her Social Democrat-led government would negotiate with the other parties in parliament on the timing of the removal of the measures.

On Monday, internal border controls between Finland and the other Schengen countries that form the European travel zone without identity checks ended. This restriction was introduced at the end of December to slow the spread of the omicron variant. Travelers from outside the EU will continue to undergo border checks until at least February 14. February.

On Tuesday, the Norwegian daily Dagbladet reported the first case of COVID-19 on the island of Utsira in the North Sea.

“We avoided it for two years,” Mayor Marte Eide Klovning told Dagbladet, adding that the island’s 188 residents had been vaccinated. It was unclear how the virus reached the island, located about 120 kilometers (75 miles) south of Bergen, Norway’s second-largest city.

———

Follow AP’s pandemic coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic