According to the plan, everyone over 45 will receive the first dose of the vaccine in May. Then we can start living normally, thinks infection control director Geir Bukholm.
“I suppose we can start living normally when the risk groups are vaccinated.
By this he means anyone over 45 years of age who will receive the first dose of the vaccine as planned May.
- Eventually, we will open the borders and get normal tourist traffic. And everything to do with socializing. This can happen at the end of May. This is the infection control director at the National Institute of Public Health.
So we can travel in three months, go to concerts and party in the city.
The lack of vaccines has been a big obstacle so far. Norway has an agreement to provide vaccines in the EU, while other countries such as Israel and the UK have provided themselves with vaccines and are much further than other EU countries.
- We will receive large stocks in May and June. From vaccinating a relatively small fraction, we suddenly vaccinated almost everyone within two months.
-Is the optimistic scenario realistic now?
- An optimistic scenario is approaching. Pfizer and AstraZeneca appear to be operating as they should. I think our current optimistic scenario is getting closer to the realistic one, says Bukholm.
The National Institute of Public Health is currently working with the Norwegian Directorate of Health on a re-opening plan that will be presented to the government in mid-March.
Denmark has already launched a plan in which one of the tools is mass testing twice a week.
See our article on the exchange of driving licenses.
- Does it matter for mass tests twice a week also in Norway?
- We're looking at it.
- What kinds of samples are you looking at then?
- Saliva samples are things you can evaluate in combination with quick tests. I think there will be important tips for reopening.
Bukholm adds that plans are subject to change if unforeseen factors arise:
- There are many facts that are beyond our control: We do not know, for example, the impact of new virus variants in the future. If we let go too early for the epidemic to rage, there will be many sick people up to 45 years old in the group.
"If we go into the high-pressure multi-vaccinated phase, we will end up with many who will need hospitalization and intensive care," says the director of infection control at FHI.
In any case, there is a hope of a return to normalcy that we all need
