Denmark scraps Covid-19 restrictions, declares virus no longer poses threat to society
Denmark has announced plans to end virus restrictions in February and reclassify Covid-19 as a disease that no longer poses a threat to society, even as infections hit a record high.
The Nordic country, one of the most vaccinated in the world, will not extend measures against the pandemic beyond January 31, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said.
Denmark’s decision to reclassify the virus dramatically boosts the idea that it’s time to start thinking of covid as endemic rather than a pandemic. However, experts at the World Health Organization have warned against complacency.
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Over 80 percent of Denmark’s population is vaccinated with two doses, of whom 60 percent are boosted with a third dose.
There is also a feeling that restrictions simply cannot stop the highly transmissible omicron strain. Around a million Danes have been infected in the last two months alone, although hospitalizations in the country are declining. The nation of 5.8 million people has 44 Covid-19 patients in intensive care units, up from 73 two weeks ago.
“The pandemic is still here, but with what we know, we now dare to believe that we have passed the critical phase,” Frederiksen said, calling the development “a milestone.”
The disease is spreading faster in Denmark after an omicron subvariant, BA.2, became the dominant version of the virus in the second week of the year. It can be about 1.5 times more infectious than the BA.1 subvariant, which accounts for 98% of omicron cases worldwide, according to preliminary estimates by Danish health authorities.
Denmark is ahead of its Nordic neighbours. Swedish authorities are extending their restrictions due to a spike in infections, but hope to lift most restrictions within two weeks. Norway may begin scaling back measures as only “extreme” action would curb the spread of the omicron variant, its Public Health Institute said.
Denmark’s current restrictions include limited opening hours for restaurants and bars, the use of Covid passports, and the requirement for face masks in shops and at some indoor events.
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