The government said on Thursday that Sweden will require a vaccine pass for visitors from other Nordic countries to cross the border as it gradually tightens restrictions due to the rising number of COVID-19 infections and concerns about the Omicron version. Is.
Sweden has seen a jump in new infections in recent days, if from levels below those of most European countries. It has reintroduced a limited number of measures and officials said more steps would be needed if infections continued to rise.
“The new virus variant Omicron makes it difficult to predict how things will develop,” Health Minister Lena Hallengren told a news conference. Is.” is increasing.”
The expansion of vaccine pass rules to cover the Nordic countries, the only nations not covered by the requirement, will go into effect on December 21.
Officials also warned that tighter restrictions could be announced next week when the public health agency publishes an update about how it sees the pandemic developing further.
“We need to be prepared for a worsening situation,” said Karin Tegmark Wiesel, head of the Public Health Agency.
“We can talk about further measures next week to slow the spread of the infection.”
The Centre-Left government has drawn up a three-pronged road map to respond to the surge in infections.
Several measures have already been taken and officials are preparing to extend the demand for COVID passes to places like restaurants.
Earlier this week, Norway tightened COVID restrictions to limit the spread of the Omicron variant amid record levels of infections and hospitalizations.
Denmark has reimposed a number of restrictions, including the closure of primary schools, in the lead-up to Christmas.
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