More than 5,700 Swedes have died since the start of the year and health authorities have since acknowledged there were clear failings in the preparedness of aged-care homes, just as we're seeing in Australia. ... As of August 12, the latest death rate in Sweden … VideoWhat does the world want from Joe Biden? The Swedish Government did put some restrictions in place. The latest figures are a sign of just how vulnerable Sweden is to global economic shifts. What does the world want from Joe Biden? VideoFour-year-old's viral dinosaur song made into book, Why a teacher was killed 'execution-style' in Ethiopia, End to Gibraltar land border prompts joy and trepidation. Did Sweden's coronavirus strategy succeed or fail? He believes one of Sweden's strengths is that public confidence in health advice appears to be strong, limiting the risk of fatigue in the long-run. "This coronavirus is an impressive adversary, one that we should never underestimate at all.". Public Health Agency of Sweden; The latest coronavirus news from Reuters. .css-14iz86j-BoldText{font-weight:bold;}Sweden, which avoided a lockdown during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic, saw its economy shrink 8.6% in the April-to-June period from the previous three months. "The downturn in GDP is the largest for a single quarter for the period of 1980 and forward," Statistics Sweden said. Professor Goldsmith agrees, saying that only in years to come will we be able to fairly compare the different approaches adopted by nations around the world. "Compliance in Sweden with the recommendations of the public health authority is incredibly high, it's about 80 per cent.". But Professor Dillner believes there is a "significant spread" in some populations in Stockholm, suggesting his research found about 8-31 per cent of healthcare workers in Stockholm had tested positive in antibody tests. The Government’s work in response to the virus responsible for COVID-19 Picture: The Government Offices of Sweden. In the last month, Sweden has reported a 30 percent increase in the number of confirmed cases, which jumped from 5,726 to 7,441 and about 2,000 more deaths, according to data collected by Our World in Data. As deaths rise, many are questioning measures that appear relaxed compared with the rest of the world. But the government did hope that keeping more of society open would help limit job losses and mitigate the effect on businesses. Sweden’s Covid-19 strategy, adopted in March, emerged from the country’s top epidemiologist and other leaders’ evaluation of what little science about … Staycations are popular here this summer, thanks to a slew of travel restrictions imposed on Sweden … Data may also be adjusted slightly in the following days after August 27. Various forecasts predict the Swedish economy will still shrink by about 5% this year. That is less than other countries hit hard by Covid-19, such as Italy, Spain and the UK, but still similar to the rest of Scandinavia. U.S. Citizen Travelers: Enroll for alerts at step.state.gov . Catch up on the main COVID-19 news from January 16 with our coronavirus blog. Prioritised testing of people who are sick, and not widespread screening of healthcare workers, was a mistake in his view. Why did Emirates suspend flights and how will this impact Australians stuck overseas? India begins world's biggest Covid vaccine drive. Sweden recorded its highest death tally in 150 years for the first half of 2020, according to the country's official statistics office. The authorities here have always said the country's Covid-19 strategy wasn't designed to protect the economy. In case you hadn’t heard, Sweden is one of the very few western nations that didn’t respond to COVID-19 by imposing any lockdowns. Although businesses have largely continued to operate in Sweden, the country's economy is highly dependent on exports, which were hit by lack of demand from abroad. .css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link{color:#3F3F42;}.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited{color:#696969;}.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited{font-weight:700;border-bottom:1px solid #BABABA;-webkit-text-decoration:none;text-decoration:none;}.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link:hover,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited:hover,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link:focus,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited:focus{border-bottom-color:currentcolor;border-bottom-width:2px;color:#B80000;}@supports (text-underline-offset:0.25em){.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited{border-bottom:none;-webkit-text-decoration:underline #BABABA;text-decoration:underline #BABABA;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:1px;text-decoration-thickness:1px;-webkit-text-decoration-skip-ink:none;text-decoration-skip-ink:none;text-underline-offset:0.25em;}.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link:hover,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited:hover,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:link:focus,.css-1xgj2ad-InlineLink:visited:focus{-webkit-text-decoration-color:currentcolor;text-decoration-color:currentcolor;-webkit-text-decoration-thickness:2px;text-decoration-thickness:2px;color:#B80000;}}The European Union saw a contraction of 11.9% for the same period. So far, Sweden has suffered around 5800 deaths – far smaller than the US' 167,000 deaths or the UK's almost 50,000 fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University's coronavirus resource centre Its economy shrank by 8.6 per cent in the April-to-June quarter — the worst performance in decades. State infectious disease specialist says changing the rules harms public trust. "I think they've got to ask themselves: was that really the right way to go?" The results also suggest that, while more of society remained open than in other parts of Europe, plenty of Swedes still chose to stay away from shops, restaurants and gyms. Patience a virtue as rain interrupts fourth Test between Australia and India, Bushfire destroys at least one property in Perth's south, Trump to leave Washington for nearby air base on Inauguration Day morning: reports, 'QAnon shaman' detained as prosecutors back away from US Capitol 'kill-capture' plot claim, Where can I travel to? The emails, obtained by Swedish journalists under freedom of information laws, showed that in March, Anders Tegnell appeared to ask whether a higher death rate among older people might be acceptable if it led to faster herd immunity. .css-orcmk8-HeadlineContainer{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-box-pack:justify;-webkit-justify-content:space-between;-ms-flex-pack:justify;justify-content:space-between;}Final execution of Trump presidency is carried out.css-1dedj2h-Rank{-webkit-align-self:center;-ms-flex-item-align:center;align-self:center;color:#B80000;margin-left:3.125rem;}1, Centrist elected leader of Merkel's CDU party2, Tennis stars' arrival angers stranded Australians3, India begins world's biggest Covid vaccine drive4, Signal messaging service goes down amid user surge5, End to Gibraltar land border prompts joy and trepidation6, Nasa's 'megarocket' set to fire up engines7, 'Like a medieval battle': The riots frontline8, US expects 'rapid growth' of virus variant9, Why California is struggling to contain Covid10. "They've had a death rate that's 10 times per million population of the local countries, which really are their best comparison.". Sweden Stayed Open And More People Died Of Covid-19, But The Real Reason May Be Something Darker Eric Mack Contributor Opinions expressed by Forbes Contributors are their own. Given the obvious hardship, misery, and death lockdowns bring, Sweden’s leaders decided it made more sense to just isolate the sick and elderly. One girl's quest for clean water. STOCKHOLM, Aug. 9, 2020 -- People enjoy themselves at a lakeside beach in Stockholm, capital of ...[+] Sweden, on Aug. 9, 2020. But it has the highest per capita COVID-19 death rate of all Scandinavian countries. Every day new official numbers are presented by Folkhälsomyndigheten and on the news but often without the proper context. What happens to your body in extreme heat? 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Sweden's Prime Minister Stefan Löfven said public health officials were relying on "Folkvett" — the common sense of citizens — to ensure the health system wasn't overwhelmed. Sweden … Download the ABC News app and subscribe to our range of news alerts for the latest on how the pandemic is impacting the world, The dark side to Sweden's divisive coronavirus strategy, Charting the pandemic: Latest data on the NSW and Victoria outbreaks, Victorians flee NSW ahead of border closure, leaving tourism operators in tears, Sydney may have 'missed the boat' for effective lockdown, expert says, What border restrictions are in place in each state and territory for NSW and Victorian travellers. There is n't herd immunity, which I do n't think there will be. `` will be ``... Been doing, '' Professor Dillner said 8.6 per cent. `` per capita COVID-19 death rate of %. Sharply in recent weeks sign of just how vulnerable Sweden is not yet recession! 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