Corona in Sweden: better quality of life, but at what price? Surprised look at the death toll

In Sweden, the government is relying on citizens to take responsibility for fighting the corona pandemic - and is therefore giving them more freedom.

Can that go well?

Munich - Sweden has not only been classified as a corona risk area in Germany since the beginning of March, but also as a high incidence area.

The number of infections in this country is high, with Johns Hopkins University reporting a seven-day incidence of 378.3 on around Tuesday (April 27).

That is more than twice as high as in Germany, where in comparison the seven-day incidence on Wednesday (April 28) was 160.6 according to the Robert Koch Institute.

Nevertheless, the Swedish government gives its citizens much more freedom than the Germans - and is increasingly focusing on personal responsibility.

For example, wearing an FFP2 mask when shopping or on the train is only a recommendation, not an obligation.

Instead, the country relies more on the safety margin.

Corona policy in Sweden: shops, fitness studios, restaurants and schools open

With distance rules, restaurants, hairdressers and also fitness studios have opened. Restaurants and bars are open until 8.30 p.m., only alcohol is prohibited from 8 p.m. Kindergartens and schools also have open doors up to the ninth grade. No sign of the German curfews or retail closings.

The combination of high numbers of infections and freedoms for citizens should also result in a higher pandemic-related mortality rate.

According to

JHU CSSE COVID-19 Data, 

almost 14,000 people have died from or with the disease so far.

And yet the number of daily corona deaths has been falling drastically since the beginning of February.

While more than 400 people died on some days in January, it has only been far below 100 per day since February - if at all.

Corona policy in Sweden: rapid vaccination ensures a falling death rate

Compared to Germany, fewer people have died from the pandemic in Sweden since February 2021. The Swedish health authority Folkhälsomyndigheten explains these low death rates with the progress made in vaccination among high-risk patients, especially elderly and nursing home residents. These previously made up about 50 percent of the corona deaths in Sweden. And Sweden is also making faster progress in vaccinating than most other EU countries. Only Malta and Hungary vaccinate faster than Sweden in the Union.

Due to the progress in vaccination and the comparatively low death rate, Sweden is currently not thinking of deviating from its “special route”.

Stricter measures would theoretically be possible, but the country currently sees no reason to do so.

In addition to the virus, Swedish health policy also takes into account the consequences of measures such as lockdowns.

Corona in Sweden: Damages from the restrictions are also considered

This includes mental illnesses such as depression, excessive consumption of alcohol, lack of exercise and other serious consequences of isolation.

Swedish freedoms should therefore keep citizens healthy not only physically but also mentally.

And the Swedish government tries to give its citizens this quality of life through freedom through the measures.

It remains to be seen whether the Swedish “Sonderweg” was the right weapon against the coronavirus in the pandemic.

And yet, despite the high number of infections, the path to freedom does not seem completely wrong on the basis of the low death rates.

List of rubric lists: © picture alliance / Anders Wiklund / TT News Agency / dpa |

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