Coronavirus in Denmark: Restrictions to be eased further

Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen and others held a press conference on Tuesday (DK), the day before the reopening of schools and day-care centers. She reported that the number of hospitalizations and ICU patients are declining more quickly than expected and that the country can open up slightly more in next phase than it had planned. She did not specify what restrictions would be relaxed but said that the administration’s focus was on workplaces and the economy. Frederiksen seemed relieved, more relaxed and confident – even happy – as she announced the change in the administration’s outlook. She defended its conservative policy, praised people for their cooperation in observing the social distancing guidelines during the Easter holidays, and reiterated the necessity of continuing the practice.

R0 shrinking to a safe level

Statens Serum Institut released a report yesterday afternoon on the status of the infection with an estimate of the R0 rate (DK), that is, the rate of infection from an individual Covid-19 patient. The rate had fallen from 2.6 persons on March 12 to 1.4 persons on March 24, to 0.9 on April 7, when Frederiksen presented the reopening plan, and further to 0.6. A level below 1.0 means that the virus is not spreading. At the press conference, Kåre Mølbak, from the Institute, said that the positive trend was owing in particular to the behavior of people in the 70-80-year-old age group (DK), who followed the administration’s guidelines and avoided infection. He added that the infection rate would rise to about 0.8 after the first stage of lifting restrictions but would remain under control. 

Frederiksen invited representatives of the other political parties to a meeting immediately after the press conference to discuss how to expand the reopening. She had previously been criticized for not including other parties in the decision on the extent of the first phase of reopening, and yesterday, as the figures on infections and deaths continued to decline, she came under pressure to ease up (DK) further on the restrictions. The administration had chosen to follow the most cautious of the three policies that the Ministry Health set forth for the first phase of the reopening, which is scheduled to run until May 10.

Professional services and small businesses could be next

 At the subsequent meeting, the parties had many and various recommendations for relaxing (DK) the restrictions. The Liberal Alliance Party favored opening professional services as well as restaurants that can adhere to precautionary principles. The Danish People’s Party emphasized the need for contact among older people who have been isolated and sometimes become lonely and depressed. The Socialist People’s Party and the Social Liberals recommended opening adult education, the courts and small businesses such as hairdressers and dentists. Other parties urged opening of outdoor clubs, afterschool workshops and other educational institutions. The New Right had a detailed plan for accelerating the reopening schedule to cover almost everything by May 20. No conclusions were reached at the meeting.

This good news came after reports yesterday that the four largest municipalities in the country, including Copenhagen, would not follow the Health Authority’s recommendation that children from households with infected people should attend school. After many parents and several political parties expressed concerns about the policy, Minister of Health Magnus Heunicke announced that it was changing the guidelines to allow such children to stay home. Teachers and day-care staff with sick family members in their homes were still expected to work, however, because they should be able to maintain good hygiene.