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DENMARK will remove almost all COVID-19 restrictions in its country from Tuesday (2/01). The reason is, the high vaccination rate is considered able to overcome the new variant of Omicron.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said that they would return to life before the COVID-19 pandemic and declared that the virus was no longer a threat to society.
“We say goodbye to restrictions, and welcome to life as we felt before Corona,” Frederiksen said at a press conference, citing Dailymail.co.uk, Sunday (1/30).
This policy will make Denmark the first European Union country to lift all its domestic restrictions, despite the widespread Omicron wave.
Mette Frederiksen credits Denmark’s high vaccination rate, allowing for the removal of the restrictions.
Frederiksen also stated that the protection provided by the vaccine was sufficient to fight the Omicron variant which was considered no more lethal than the previous variants.
“Vaccine has become a superweapon. It has given us a strong defense against continuing infections. That’s why the government decided that COVID-19 is no longer considered a disease that threatens society,” Frederiksen continued.
This decision has become a reference for other European countries to join in loosening or even lifting their restrictions. The reason is because the Omicron variant of COVID-19 has proven to be relatively mild, despite soaring infection rates in various countries.
The Danish government from next Tuesday (2/01) will lift all domestic restrictions, including abolishing the rules for vaccination certificates, wearing masks, as well as early closures for bars and restaurants.
However, Denmark will maintain some border rules over the next four weeks, including testing and/or quarantine requirements for foreign tourists depending on their vaccination status.
For information, Denmark had previously lifted all restrictions on September 10, 2021, before finally re-implementing COVID-19 tests in early November 2021, then making restrictions when cases soared. Denmark’s capital, Copenhagen, has faced massive protests over the January 2022 vaccination certificate rules.
Therefore, the Danish Government decided to remove the restrictions, thanks to the high vaccination rate and very low death toll. In Denmark, health authorities recommend people who test positive for COVID-19 to self-isolate for four days, but citizens will not be legally bound to do so.
Meanwhile, the country of 5.8 million people had reported 46,000 new cases as of Tuesday (1/25). Although the figure is very high, but the authorities believe that the current epidemic will indeed peak soon and a vaccine is sufficient to contain it.
“We have good control over hospitalization rates. This is due to a combination of the 3.5 million Danes who were revaccinated and the less severe nature of Omicron,” they said.
Meanwhile, more than 60% of Danes had received their third dose, one month ahead of the health authorities’ schedule. Even in the past week, elderly people who are most vulnerable during the pandemic, have been able to get the fourth vaccine.
Meanwhile, although the number of people hospitalized due to COVID-19 continues to increase and has now surpassed 900 people, health authorities said the situation was still under control. [kompas.com/photo special]
