Sweden abolishes all measures, and Serbia is one step away from that

Sweden abolishes all measures, and Serbia is one step away from that

The decision to abolish the already mild measures soon is based on the high rate of vaccination and the low death rate from COVID-19.

By September 7, 70 percent of the adult population in Sweden had received two doses of the vaccine, and a total of 81.6 percent of citizens over the age of 18 had received at least one dose.

According to ECDC data, Sweden has the third lowest mortality rate from COVID-19 in Europe (after Liechtenstein and Slovakia) in the last two weeks, and this situation has been going on since early summer season.

"For a long time we were forced to live under restrictions in order to protect the lives and health of citizens. Thanks to a successful vaccination campaign, we have come a long way and now our society is in a better situation. We have assessed that the restrictions have little effect on fighting the infection", Public Health Minister Lena Hallengren said, announcing mitigation. As of September 29, there are no more restrictions.

Restrictions on private indoor gatherings, which could not be attended by more than 50 people, were also lifted. The biggest surprise is the withdrawal of the recommendation to work from home, which means that many companies, public and state institutions will invite employees to return to their offices after a full year and a half.

"Vaccination has been shown to be important, and to have yielded results. We have good coverage and we can clearly see the effect of vaccination. We have the lowest mortality rate in Europe. Vaccinated people from September 29 can live as before, while those who are not vaccinated are at risk to become seriously ill", said John Charlson, director of the Institute of Public Health.

Namely, the infection in Sweden has not disappeared and the daily average is slightly more than a thousand newly infected.

According to Charlson, the disease mainly affects people who have not been vaccinated, so the intensive vaccination campaign continues at all ages, especially among teenagers aged 16 to 18.