Return to “Life as we knew”: Denmark lifts curbs though omicron

Copenhagen: Denmark on Tuesday became the first European Union to appoint all Covid limits despite records the number of cases, relying on high vaccination levels to overcome the lighter omicron variant.

After the first attempt to lift all the limits between September and November, the Scandinavian country once again waste facemask, Covid passed and was a limited opening hours for bars and restaurants.

“I am very happy that this will end tomorrow. It’s good for life in the city, for nightlife, just to get out again”, a 17-year-old student Thea Skovgaard told AFP the day before lift.

The nightclub opened back on Tuesday, when the limits of the number of people permitted at the indoor meeting also ended.

Only a few restrictions left on the country’s border, for unbaccinated travelers coming from non-Schengen countries.

East-easing came as Danish registered around 40,000-50,000 new covid cases a day, or almost one percent of the 5.8 million population of the country.

“We have very high coverage of adults vaccinated with three doses,” Symonsen epidemiologists from the University of Roskilde told AFP.

More than 60 percent of Denmark has received a third dose – one month before the health authority schedule – compared to the UE average below 45 percent.

Including those who recently have Covid, health authorities estimate that 80 percent of the population is protected against severe forms of disease.

“With Omicron not a severe illness for vaccinated, we believe it makes sense to raise the limitations”, said Simonsen.

The broad deployment of the Omicron variant is also expected to lead to “stronger and long-lasting immunity”, helping the country fend off future waves, he said.

Two years after the outbreak of Covid-19, the Danish strategy enjoyed spacious support at home.

In the poll published Monday by politics every day, 64 percent of Denmark surveyed said they had confidence in the Covid government policy.

Personal responsibility

Going forward, Danes was urged to carry out personal responsibilities, said Simonsen.

“Without a Covid feed there will be a shift in responsibility”, he said.

Danes has used a lot of home tests to detect infection, but this is now being removed and instead, anyone with symptoms is advised to stay at home.

Danish Health Authority Currently “recommend” those who test positively to isolate for four days, while contact cases do not need to be quarantined.

Facemask and Pass Covid are also recommended for hospital visits.

The government said it did not expect to have to return to new closure but still optimistic carefully.

“We cannot guarantee anything when it comes to Biology”, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said last week when announcing the country “to life because we knew before Corona”.

“It’s nice that this is over but we will really live without any limit now? I doubt,” said Culling Hjort, fast food vendors who want to see their customers’ faces again.

This is the second time Denmark has tried to return to a pre-pandemic lifestyle.

On September 10, the country raised all its limits, before reintroducing some of them in early November.

Museums, cinemas and theaters and concert venues are then closed before Christmas, and reopened again in early January.

Facing a lower level of hospitalization than in previous waves, several European countries, including France, Ireland and the United Kingdom, has announced the appointment or subtraction of its limits that are quite large, even though there is a record or very high case.

“Two years into a pandemic, the population in most countries has reached a high level of immunity, from a vaccine or natural disease”, said Simonsen.

“This is how the tip is, judging from what we have seen with historical pandemics”.

According to the World Health Organization, 73 percent of the European population has contracted Covid-19 at least once since January 2020.

Tyra Krause from Denmark’s Public Health and Research Institution SSI said while she expected Covid-19 to return in regular waves, “like flu”.

“We may finally have to vaccinate the risk group ahead of the fall to prevent a severe case”, he told the Science Videnskab magazine.