Despite the low vaccination rate: Sweden is lifting all corona rules

Created: 2022-02-09 16:19

By: Nail Akkoyun

Sweden has lifted all corona measures despite the low vaccination rate.

(symbol photo) © McPhoto/Imago Images

Sweden drops the corona measures.

Prime Minister Andersson justified the step with the vaccination rate of a certain age group.

Stockholm – After Denmark, Sweden has also lifted almost all corona restrictions*.

Since Wednesday (February 9th, 2022) there have been no limited opening times or distance rules for restaurants and bars.

Limiting the number of participants for meetings and events is also a thing of the past.

In addition, Swedes are no longer asked to wear mouth and nose protection on public transport.

There are also relaxations for travellers: When entering the Scandinavian country, EU citizens no longer have to prove vaccination, recovery or a negative Covid 19 test.

Already on Wednesday night, many Swedes could hardly wait to celebrate the new easing.

As recordings by Swedish news agencies showed, long queues formed in front of clubs and discos around midnight.

Corona in Sweden: Vaccination recommendation from the age of twelve remains in place

The government and the Folkhälsomyndigheten health authority had announced the lifting of most of the measures last week.

According to the information, the corona pandemic is entering a new phase in which the majority of the population is vaccinated and omicron infections * lead to milder disease progression.

Without a mask and without a distance: In Sweden, there will be celebrations on Tuesday (February 9th, 2022) due to the dropped corona measures.

© Johan Nilsson/Imago Images

However, some recommendations – not rules – including for the unvaccinated remain in place.

The most important of these is that everyone over the age of twelve can be vaccinated against Covid-19, the health authority said.

In order to protect the most vulnerable, it is also important to maintain measures in the health and care system and in old people's homes.

Sweden follows the neighboring country Denmark, which also lifted most of the corona restrictions on Tuesday (February 1st, 2022)*.

Hours later, Norway also relaxed the rules.

As the editorial network Germany reports, Finland is also planning to completely lift the current restrictions in February.

A clear easing trend is thus emerging in Scandinavia.

Low vaccination rate in Sweden: Most of the over 50-year-olds are vaccinated against Corona

Virologists have been recommending for some time to wait until the omicron wave has peaked before easing the lockdown.

Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach, for example, expects this to be achieved in mid-February.

"Even though the pandemic has entered a new phase, it is definitely not over," Sweden's state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell said at a press conference last week.

If the situation changes dramatically, the measures could, as in the past, be tightened or introduced again.

When it comes to vaccination rates, Sweden is below the European average: only 39 percent of the total population has received a booster vaccination (as of February 9th, 2022).

According to Swedish Prime Minister Magdalena Andersson, however, 80 percent of those over 50 are boosted.

The population is therefore considered to be less at risk than in Germany, for example, where only 18.2 million people over the age of 60 (as of February 9th, 2022) have been vaccinated three times.

(nak/dpa)