Fri 10 September 2021:
Denmark’s high vaccination coverage has allowed it to become one of the first EU countries to relax all domestic restrictions after 548 days of putting up barriers to prevent Covid-19 from spreading.
The return to normalcy has been slow, but as of Friday, the digital pass – a proof of vaccination – is no longer necessary when entering nightclubs, making it the last virus safeguard to fall.
More than 80% of persons over the age of 12 in the Scandinavian country have received the two shots, leading the Danish authorities to announce that Covid-19 is no longer a “socially critical” disease as of midnight.
“I wouldn’t say it is too early. We have opened the door but we have also said that we can close it if needed,” Søren Riis Paludan, a professor of virology at Aarhus University in Denmark’s second largest city, said.
The tipping point in Denmark to start easing restrictions came when a majority in the 50+ age group had both shots, Riis Paludan said.
Masks are no longer required to be worn on public transportation as of August 14. Nightclubs reopened on September 1st, public gathering restrictions were lifted, and it was no longer necessary to show the pass to sit inside restaurants, attend sporting events, gyms, or visit the hairdresser.
Face coverings are still required at airports, and people are recommended to wear one when visiting the doctor, testing centers, or hospitals. Distancing is still advised, and non-Danes are subject to tight border access restrictions. The epidemic is currently being treated as “an ordinary dangerous illness”.
The Danish health minister, Magnus Heunicke, said in August that “the epidemic is under control”, but warned “we are not out of the epidemic” and the government would act as needed.
