Extra: Denmark’s response to the new coronavirus

In Denmark as in the rest of the world, the spread of the new coronavirus and Covid-19 has overwhelmed all the other news. The country has had the fastest growing number of infections in Europe this week. According to the latest tally (at 10:00 am on Friday), there were 785 infections out of nearly 4,000 tested, 10 hospitalized, 2 in critical condition, and no deaths. On Wednesday evening, the government issued a lockdown order. The government’s response and the measures called for seem timely and comprehensive, and the public, for the most part, seems to be cooperating with them. They are worth considering in countries that are still reluctant to implement drastic measures or that have a head of state who pretends it’s all a hoax. Here is a summary.

• People who are ill or suspect that they may be infected are instructed not to go to a hospital but rather to call their own GP or a central hotline and to follow directions for home quarantine for 14 days.

• Guidelines for preventing infection are posted widely and repeated often: Wash your hands, don’t share hands, use sanitizer, cough into your sleeve, practice “social distancing,” etc.

• The same goes for guidelines for limiting the use of public transport: Don’t use it if you feel ill, walk or bicycle when possible, avoid rush hour, use sanitizer after touching surfaces. Reservations are required on regional trains.

• Foreign travel restrictions are expanded to cover additional high-risk countries on an ongoing basis.

• Public day care facilities, schools and universities are closed for two weeks. Private schools are urged to close as well.

• Public cultural institutions, libraries, etc. are closed for two weeks. Private institutions are urged to close as well.

• Civil servants who don’t perform critical functions are sent home. If they cannot work from home, they will continue to receive their pay.

• Private sector employers are urged to let employees work at home or take leave and to hold physical meetings only when necessary. 

• Large restaurants, fitness centers, movie theaters, recreational clubs, churches and evening schools are urged to suspend activities, and most seem to have done so.

• The unemployed are excused from regular meetings at job centers and activation and will continue to receive benefits.

• Hospitals and nursing homes are urged to restrict visits.

• A website (DK) has been set up with comprehensive information about the status of the virus in Denmark, including a hotline, precautionary measures for various types of people and organizations, procedures for reporting illness, travel restrictions, a summary in English, and much more. The Danish Broadcasting Corporation Denmark’s Radio publishes extensive information (DK) on developments in the management of the crisis, as do local English-language publications, and many news outlets are suspending their paywalls for these pages.

On Thursday, Parliament passed an emergency bill (DK) that allows healthcare authorities to require examination, treatment and quarantine for people they suspect are infected. This goes so far as allowing entry into private homes to implement the procedures indicated. The Ministers of Health and Justice are authorized to set forth guidelines for the police to implement the measures in the bill. These including banning access to public institutions, supermarkets, shops, public nursing homes and hospitals as well as placing restrictions on the use of public transport and banning events in which more than 100 people congregate. The latter applies to Parliament as well. The number of MPs present will be limited to 95, with proportional representation of the various parties. The bill passed unanimously, with the MPs standing to indicate their vote rather than pressing a button on their desks.

Living in a state of emergency
This doesn’t mean that everything is going smoothly. Despite warnings by health officials and supermarket chains, there are widespread reports of hoarding of groceries and household supplies, with customers occasionally fighting over the last items available. Hand sanitizer and masks sell out quickly whenever a new delivery arrives. Yeast, for baking, is in special demand. For medication that is in great demand, pharmacies are instructed to sell only one package per customer. You see people on the sidewalk carrying jumbo packages of toilet paper. 

I am told by some acquaintances that many are forgetting the country’s supposed tradition of “solidarity” and are panicking and acting selfishly. There are isolated reports of people who have been diagnosed as infected violating quarantine. Some others downplay the risk and are annoyed at the inconvenience. But on the whole, people appear to appreciate the government’s thoroughgoing intervention and to be cooperating with the restrictions. The pandemic would come under control sooner if other countries addressed it in a similar way.