Norway to reinstate Covid-19 certificate as virus cases surge
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said on Friday the country would reintroduce its coronavirus health pass, the Covid-19 certificate, amid a rise in new infections.
Municipalities in Norway would be able to reintroduce the use of domestic Covid-19 certificates to access big events and venues such as nightclubs following a rise in coronavirus infections in the country in recent weeks.
PM Støre said that Covid-19 certificates would be used to avoid lockdowns and stricter national measures.
"This means that you can live as normally as possible, even if there is a lot of infection in society," he said at a government press conference.
The city of Tromsø, northern Norway, which has been experiencing a spike in infections, said it would be introducing the use of a Covid-19 certificate from as early as Tuesday next week.
Covid-19 certificates previously flashed green when scanned if you had been vaccinated with one dose more than three weeks ago, have had corona detected in the last six months or have taken a negative test in the last 24 hours.
It was also announced that unvaccinated healthcare workers will also be asked to wear face masks and test for the virus twice a week.
"We want regular testing of unvaccinated health personnel and a clear message that they must wear face masks," health minister Ingvild Kjerkol said
There would also be a change in the testing rules for members of the public who are unvaccinated, not just healthcare professionals.
Unvaccinated close contacts of those who catch Covid would need to test daily for seven days from when they last had contact with the person infected with coronavirus. This new rule will come into effect from November 16th. This rule will apply to over 18s.
"If you are unvaccinated and live with somebody who is diagnosed with coronavirus, you must be tested every day with a home-test or every other day with a PCR test for seven days. The test obligation applies until seven days have passed since the last time they had close contact. So this is not just a recommendation, but a duty," Kjerkol said.
Norway, which earlier lifted all Covid-19 restrictions in late September, will also propose a third vaccine dose for people over 18.
Comments
See Also
Municipalities in Norway would be able to reintroduce the use of domestic Covid-19 certificates to access big events and venues such as nightclubs following a rise in coronavirus infections in the country in recent weeks.
PM Støre said that Covid-19 certificates would be used to avoid lockdowns and stricter national measures.
"This means that you can live as normally as possible, even if there is a lot of infection in society," he said at a government press conference.
The city of Tromsø, northern Norway, which has been experiencing a spike in infections, said it would be introducing the use of a Covid-19 certificate from as early as Tuesday next week.
Covid-19 certificates previously flashed green when scanned if you had been vaccinated with one dose more than three weeks ago, have had corona detected in the last six months or have taken a negative test in the last 24 hours.
It was also announced that unvaccinated healthcare workers will also be asked to wear face masks and test for the virus twice a week.
"We want regular testing of unvaccinated health personnel and a clear message that they must wear face masks," health minister Ingvild Kjerkol said
There would also be a change in the testing rules for members of the public who are unvaccinated, not just healthcare professionals.
Unvaccinated close contacts of those who catch Covid would need to test daily for seven days from when they last had contact with the person infected with coronavirus. This new rule will come into effect from November 16th. This rule will apply to over 18s.
"If you are unvaccinated and live with somebody who is diagnosed with coronavirus, you must be tested every day with a home-test or every other day with a PCR test for seven days. The test obligation applies until seven days have passed since the last time they had close contact. So this is not just a recommendation, but a duty," Kjerkol said.
Norway, which earlier lifted all Covid-19 restrictions in late September, will also propose a third vaccine dose for people over 18.
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.