The Fort Worth Press - Denmark unmasks to 'live normally' again with Omicron

USD -
AED 3.67295
AFN 68.452776
ALL 93.048382
AMD 390.177793
ANG 1.816976
AOA 911.999619
ARS 998.2263
AUD 1.54507
AWG 1.8
AZN 1.698754
BAM 1.853558
BBD 2.03554
BDT 120.47462
BGN 1.855803
BHD 0.376886
BIF 2977.069937
BMD 1
BND 1.347372
BOB 6.966716
BRL 5.825396
BSD 1.008198
BTN 85.007628
BWP 13.679442
BYN 3.299388
BYR 19600
BZD 2.031743
CAD 1.39969
CDF 2864.999771
CHF 0.887995
CLF 0.035848
CLP 989.153355
CNY 7.242201
CNH 7.254505
COP 4485.54
CRC 514.803442
CUC 1
CUP 26.5
CVE 104.500739
CZK 23.985696
DJF 179.528977
DKK 7.077685
DOP 60.720649
DZD 133.952972
EGP 49.372602
ERN 15
ETB 123.045036
EUR 0.948855
FJD 2.27535
FKP 0.789317
GBP 0.789359
GEL 2.730455
GGP 0.789317
GHS 16.281891
GIP 0.789317
GMD 70.999572
GNF 8685.114015
GTQ 7.788646
GYD 210.880869
HKD 7.781775
HNL 25.453011
HRK 7.133259
HTG 132.557454
HUF 387.514307
IDR 15925.803259
ILS 3.75528
IMP 0.789317
INR 84.414504
IQD 1320.673043
IRR 42092.50406
ISK 139.809873
JEP 0.789317
JMD 159.606118
JOD 0.709202
JPY 155.972502
KES 129.514885
KGS 86.199267
KHR 4084.665671
KMF 466.349913
KPW 900.000094
KRW 1405.411475
KWD 0.307686
KYD 0.839986
KZT 496.917168
LAK 22141.007898
LBP 90227.005275
LKR 294.668935
LRD 190.003315
LSL 18.110979
LTL 2.95274
LVL 0.60489
LYD 4.884614
MAD 10.024356
MDL 18.167086
MGA 4704.489757
MKD 58.413636
MMK 2097.99974
MNT 3398.000066
MOP 8.075803
MRU 40.134198
MUR 47.429998
MVR 15.449884
MWK 1748.169588
MXN 20.548297
MYR 4.484504
MZN 63.899993
NAD 18.111065
NGN 1684.480416
NIO 37.103201
NOK 11.15606
NPR 136.03721
NZD 1.704841
OMR 0.385008
PAB 1
PEN 3.821032
PGK 4.051574
PHP 58.819002
PKR 280.056171
PLN 4.113175
PYG 7867.983726
QAR 3.675652
RON 4.722896
RSD 111.038018
RUB 99.300479
RWF 1383.775103
SAR 3.757064
SBD 8.383555
SCR 13.620181
SDG 601.488769
SEK 11.00801
SGD 1.346067
SHP 0.789317
SLE 22.814977
SLL 20969.503157
SOS 576.121825
SRD 35.279862
STD 20697.981008
SVC 8.819614
SYP 2512.529518
SZL 18.116683
THB 35.003667
TJS 10.73969
TMT 3.51
TND 3.147935
TOP 2.389991
TRY 34.35863
TTD 6.849698
TWD 32.572978
TZS 2681.658374
UAH 41.641396
UGX 3672.512403
UYU 42.486895
UZS 12891.667497
VES 44.876473
VND 25393.60245
VUV 118.721977
WST 2.803992
XAF 622.573731
XAG 0.03345
XAU 0.000391
XCD 2.70255
XDR 0.753908
XOF 622.573731
XPF 113.258656
YER 249.774976
ZAR 18.282105
ZMK 9001.205525
ZMW 27.572126
ZWL 321.999592
  • CMSC

    0.0700

    24.61

    +0.28%

  • RBGPF

    59.2500

    59.25

    +100%

  • NGG

    -0.7800

    62.12

    -1.26%

  • GSK

    -0.4100

    35.11

    -1.17%

  • AZN

    0.1000

    65.29

    +0.15%

  • BCC

    1.4200

    142.55

    +1%

  • BTI

    0.1800

    35.42

    +0.51%

  • RELX

    -0.4700

    46.12

    -1.02%

  • RIO

    -0.5800

    60.62

    -0.96%

  • SCS

    -0.3000

    13.37

    -2.24%

  • RYCEF

    -0.0400

    7.07

    -0.57%

  • CMSD

    -0.0200

    24.73

    -0.08%

  • JRI

    0.0200

    13.24

    +0.15%

  • BCE

    -0.4800

    27.21

    -1.76%

  • VOD

    0.2800

    8.75

    +3.2%

  • BP

    0.4100

    28.57

    +1.44%

Denmark unmasks to 'live normally' again with Omicron
Denmark unmasks to 'live normally' again with Omicron

Denmark unmasks to 'live normally' again with Omicron

Denmark waved goodbye to facemasks and health passes on Tuesday as it became the first European Union country to lift all of its domestic Covid curbs despite record numbers of cases of the milder Omicron variant.

Text size:

Only a few restrictions remain in place at the country's borders, for unvaccinated travellers arriving from non-Schengen countries.

After a first attempt at lifting restrictions between September and November, the Scandinavian country once again ditched its Covid checks and limited opening hours for bars and restaurants.

"For me, the best part is that we don't need to wear masks anymore. At least now we have a choice, if we want to protect ourselves or we want to feel free," Natalia Chechetkina, a receptionist in Copenhagen, told AFP.

Marie Touflet, a 23-year-old French student in the capital, said it was "pretty strange to take the metro without a mask, compared to France".

"It's really nice to be able to see people's faces and it feels like we're living normally again."

The easing comes as Denmark registers around 40,000-50,000 new Covid cases a day, or almost one percent of the country's 5.8 million inhabitants.

Health officials believe those figures will soon start going down.

"There are strong indications that the infection has peaked in the areas where it has been most pronounced," Tyra Krause of Denmark's public health and research institution SSI told news agency Ritzau.

"So it's super good timing for the restrictions to be eased," she added.

More than 60 percent of Danes have received a third dose of a Covid-19 vaccine -- one month ahead of health authorities' schedule -- compared to an EU average of just under 45 percent.

Including those who have recently had Covid, health authorities estimate that 80 percent of the population is protected against severe forms of the disease.

"With Omicron not being a severe disease for the vaccinated, we believe it is reasonable to lift restrictions", epidemiologist Lone Simonsen of the University of Roskilde told AFP.

Two years after the outbreak of Covid-19, the Danish strategy enjoys broad support at home.

In a poll published Monday by daily Politiken, 64 percent of Danes surveyed said they had faith in the government's Covid policy, while the lifting of restrictions also has widespread support in parliament.

- Personal responsibility -

Going forward, Danes are being urged to exercise personal responsibility.

"Without a Covid pass there will be a shift of responsibility," Simonsen said.

Danes have increasingly used home tests to detect infection, but these are now being phased out and instead, anyone with symptoms is advised to stay home.

The Danish Health Authority currently "recommends" those who test positive to isolate for four days, while contact cases no longer need to quarantine.

Facemasks and the Covid pass are also recommended for hospital visits.

One of the rare critics of the decision to lift restrictions was the country's Gout Association.

"We think it's important to continue using masks as long as the infection is spreading widely", association director Mette Bryde Lind told Ritzau.

The government said it does not expect to have to revert to new closures again but has remained cautious.

"We can't provide any guarantees when it comes to biology", Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen said last week when announcing the country's return "to life as we knew it before corona".

"It's really nice that this is ending but will we really live without any restrictions now? I doubt it," said Cille Hjort, a fast-food vendor.

This is the second time Denmark has tried to return to a pre-pandemic lifestyle.

On September 10, the country lifted all its restrictions before reintroducing some of them in early November.

Museums, cinemas and theatre and concert venues then closed just before Christmas, and reopened again in early January.

Faced with a lower level of hospitalisations than in previous waves, several European countries, including France, Ireland and the United Kingdom, have announced the lifting or a considerable reduction of their restrictions, despite record or very high cases.

"Two years into the pandemic, populations in most countries have reached high levels of immunity, from vaccines or natural illness", Simonsen said.

"This is how it ends, judging from what we have seen with historical pandemics".

According to the World Health Organization, 73 percent of the European population has contracted Covid-19 at least once since January 2020.

M.Delgado--TFWP