Sweden’s death rate per million (376) “is far in advance of Norway’s (44), Denmark’s (96) and Finland’s (55) — countries with similar welfare systems and demographics, but which imposed strict lockdowns…” reports the Guardian, “raising concerns that the country’s light-touch approach to the coronavirus may not be helping it build up broad immunity.”
“According to the scientific online publication Ourworldindata.com, Covid-19 deaths in Sweden were the highest in Europe per capita in a rolling seven-day average between 12 and 19 May. The country’s 6.25 deaths per million inhabitants a day was just above the UK’s 5.75.”
Slashdot reader AleRunner writes:
Immunity levels in Sweden, which were expected to reach 33% by the start of May have been measured at only 7.3%, suggesting that Sweden’s lighter lockdown may continue indefinitely whilst other countries begin to revive their economies. Writing about new Swedish antibody results in the Guardian Jon Henley goes on to report that other European countries like Finland are already considering blocking travel from Sweden which may increase Sweden’s long term isolation.
We have discussed before whether Sweden, which locked down earlier than most but with fewer restrictions could be a model for other countries. As it is, now, the country is looking more like a warning to the rest of the world.
The Guardian concludes that the Swedish government’s decision to avoid a strict lockdown “is thought unlikely to spare the Swedish economy. Although retail and entertainment spending has not collapsed quite as dramatically as elsewhere, analysts say the country will probably not reap any long-term economic benefit.”
of this story at Slashdot.
Source:: Slashdot