Scientist Says Sweden Could Have Handled Virus Better

STOCKHOLM (AP) — Sweden's chief epidemiologist showed contrition Wednesday as criticism mounted over his country’s hotly debated method of fighting the coronavirus, which has resulted in one of the highest death rates per capita in the world.

Sweden has stood out among European nations and the world for the way it has handled the pandemic, not shutting down the country or the economy like others but relying on citizens’ sense of civic duty. Swedish authorities have advised people to practice social distancing, but schools, bars and restaurants have been kept open the entire time. Only gatherings of more than 50 people have been banned.

"I think there is potential for improvement in what we have done in Sweden, quite clearly," Anders Tegnell of the Public Health Agency told Swedish radio.

Sweden, a nation of 10.2 million people, has seen 4,468 deaths linked to Covid-19, which is far more than its Scandinavian neighbors and, at 11.6%, one of the highest death rates per capita in the world. Denmark has had 580 coronavirus deaths, Finland 320 and Norway 237, according to Johns Hopkins University.

"If we were to encounter the same disease again, knowing precisely what we know about it today, I think we would settle on doing something in between what Sweden did and what the rest of the world has done," said Tegnell, considered the architect of Sweden’s pandemic approach.

Authorities in Sweden, including Tegnell, have been criticized — and have apologized — for failing to protect the country's elderly and nursing home residents.

But Tegnell said Wednesday it was still unclear what the country should have done differently. He also said other nations are unable to tell exactly what measures affected the outcome of their outbreaks because they threw everything at it in one go.

"Maybe we know that now, when you start easing the measures, we could get some kind of lesson about what else, besides what we did, you could do without a total shutdown," Tegnell said.

Asked if the country's high death toll has made him reconsider his unique approach to the pandemic, Tegnell answered, "Yes, absolutely."

The moves recommended by Tegnell have made Sweden a bit of a local pariah and did not spare the Swedish economy. More than 76,000 people have been laid off since the outbreak began and unemployment, which stands at 7.9%, is expected to climb higher.

Last week, neighboring Norway and Denmark said they were dropping mutual border controls but would keep Sweden out of a Nordic "travel bubble."

Danes said they will reopen the border in July to residents of neighboring Germany, as well as to Norway and Iceland, as it accelerates the easing of its coronavirus lockdown. However, Denmark, which has a bridge to Sweden, has postponed a decision on whether to reopen to Swedish visitors until after the summer.

By DAVID KEYTON

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