|
Summary:
Information Guide focusing on the so-called Swedish approach to tackling the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic in the country.
Further information:
As the virus expanded its prevalence across Europe and world, Sweden formally registered its first COVID-19 case on 31 January 2020. The first reported death appeared on 11 March. However, national authorities increasingly gathered international attention due to an approach to the outbreak which differed from most countries in Europe and elsewhere. Crucially, the country has never imposed a national lockdown, enforced general quarantine rules, or introduced a mask mandate. Instead, the population was expected to follow a series of recommendations issued by the Public Health Agency (Folkhälsomyndigheten). Rather than politicians, this institution became the core of Sweden's approach to this coronavirus, led by the State Epidemiologist Anders Tegnell until March 2022.
Following the Agency's advice, the Government approved legislation temporarily banning gatherings of over 50 individuals, visits to nursing homes and also closing secondary schools and universities. Primary schools remained open. Recommendations issued by the Agency included working from home whenever possible, avoiding unnecessary travel within the country, social distancing and shielding for the elderly as much as possible.
Sweden was widely reported by media outlets as registered some of the highest rates of virus presence and related death. Despite the good quality of the country's health system, strained services led to postponed surgeries. A debate was also ongoing regarding the existence of sufficient levels of personal protective equipment (PPE). Similarly to other European countries, nursing homes were particularly affected by the outbreak.
On 30 June, the Swedish Prime Minister announced the creation of a Commission to assess the country's handling of the pandemic.
|
Related Links |
- Official
-
Sweden: Public Health Agency: FAQ about COVID-19
https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/the-public-health-agency-of-sweden/communicable-disease-control/covid-19/
-
World Health Organisation: WHO Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) Dashboard: Sweden
https://covid19.who.int/region/euro/country/se
-
Sweden: Ministry of Health and Social Affairs: Articles, 03/07/2020: Swedish experiences during the COVID-19 pandemic
https://www.government.se/articles/2020/07/swedish-experiences-during-the-covid-19-pandemic/
- News
-
The Local (Sweden): Coronavirus: The latest news about the pandemic in Sweden
https://www.thelocal.se/20200902/coronavirus-the-latest-news-about-the-outbreak-in-sweden-timeline-part-two/
-
Reuters, 16/03/2020: Sweden launches coronavirus crisis package worth more than $30 billion
https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN21311G
-
Politico, 16/04/2020: Sweden takes a chance on trust as Nordic neighbors lock down
https://www.politico.eu/article/stockholm-sweden-takes-chance-nordic-lockdown-coronavirus-covid19/
-
Politico, 26/04/2020: Swedish deputy PM warns of ‘counter reaction’ to harsh lockdown measures
https://www.politico.eu/article/swedish-deputy-pm-warns-of-counter-reaction-to-harsh-lockdown-measures/
-
Politico, 29/04/2020: Swedish minister defends coronavirus approach, shrugs off far-right embrace
https://www.politico.eu/article/sweden-coronavirus-leader-ann-linde-defends-approach-shrugs-off-far-right-embrace/
-
France24, 17/05/2020: Sweden’s Covid-19 strategy has caused an ‘amplification of the epidemic’
https://www.france24.com/en/20200517-sweden-s-covid-19-strategy-has-caused-an-amplification-of-the-epidemic
-
Politico, 18/05/2020: Sweden won’t dodge economic hit despite COVID-19 light touch
https://www.politico.eu/article/swedens-cant-escape-economic-hit-with-covid-19-light-touch/
-
Reuters, 01/06/2020: Swedish PM to appoint coronavirus inquiry before summer amid criticism
https://uk.reuters.com/article/idUKKBN2382YI
-
The Guardian, 03/06/2020: We should have done more, admits architect of Sweden's Covid-19 strategy
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/jun/03/architect-of-sweden-coronavirus-strategy-admits-too-many-died-anders-tegnell
-
BBC News, 03/06/2020: Coronavirus: Sweden's Tegnell admits too many died
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-52903717
-
Politico, 10/06/2020: Swedes round on Sweden’s corona approach
https://www.politico.eu/article/swedes-turn-on-swedens-corona-response-coronavirus-covid19/
-
TIME, 15/06/2020: Sweden’s Prime Minister Rejects Criticism of Coronavirus Strategy
https://time.com/5853595/sweden-coronavirus-lockdown-criticism/
-
Bloomberg, 26/06/2020: Swedish Expert Says WHO Made ‘Total Mistake’ in Covid List
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-06-26/sweden-s-covid-expert-says-who-made-total-mistake-in-new-list
-
EurActiv, 29/06/2020: Sweden remains ‘odd one out’ among Nordics, remains bound to travel restrictions
https://www.euractiv.com/section/health-consumers/short_news/sweden-update-covid-19/
-
The Local (Sweden), 30/06/2020: Coronavirus Latest: What you need to know about the outbreak in Sweden
https://www.thelocal.se/20200310/timeline-how-the-coronavirus-has-developed-in-sweden
-
Politico, 30/06/2020: Sweden the odd one out as Nordics turn nationalist
https://www.politico.eu/article/sweden-the-odd-one-out-as-nordics-finland-norway-denmark-turn-nationalist-coronavirus-covid/
-
Deutsche Welle, 01/07/2020: Coronavirus ban: Anger in Sweden at Danish double standards
https://p.dw.com/p/3ecPj
-
Bloomberg, 01/07/2020: Sweden Launches Commission to Investigate Coronavirus Response
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-07-01/sweden-launches-commission-to-investigate-coronavirus-response
-
The Irish Times, 09/07/2020: Sweden’s grim Covid-19 result: More death and nearly equal economic damage
https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/health-family/sweden-s-grim-covid-19-result-more-death-and-nearly-equal-economic-damage-1.4300102
-
BBC News, 05/08/2020: Coronavirus: Sweden's economy hit less hard by pandemic
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-53664354
-
France24, 16/09/2020: ‘They sacrificed the elderly’: How Covid-19 spread in Sweden’s care homes
https://www.france24.com/en/20200916-they-sacrificed-the-elderly-how-covid-19-spread-in-sweden-s-care-homes
-
Channel 4 (UK), 24/09/2020: Boris Johnson sought advice from Sweden over Covid strategy
https://www.channel4.com/news/boris-johnson-sought-advice-from-sweden-over-covid-strategy
-
Deutsche Welle, 07/11/2020: Coronavirus: Sweden keeps its laid-back COVID-19 strategy
https://p.dw.com/p/3l0Nc
-
ITV News, 16/11/2020: Sweden slashes gatherings of 300 people to eight as Covid-19 cases surge
https://www.itv.com/news/2020-11-16/sweden-slashes-gathers-of-300-people-to-eight-as-covid-19-cases-surge
-
Politico, 19/11/2020: Discontent rises in Sweden as coronavirus cases spike
https://www.politico.eu/article/discontent-rises-in-sweden-as-coronavirus-cases-spike/
- Commentary and Analysis
-
Our World in Data: Sweden: Coronavirus Pandemic
https://ourworldindata.org/coronavirus/country/sweden?country=~SWE
-
Wikipedia: COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/COVID-19_pandemic_in_Sweden
-
Politico, 23/03/2020: Coronavirus: Sweden’s ‘preppers’ say I told you so
https://www.politico.eu/article/coronavirus-swedens-preppers-say-i-told-you-so/
-
The New York Times, 28/03/2020: In the Coronavirus Fight in Scandinavia, Sweden Stands Apart
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/28/world/europe/sweden-coronavirus.html
-
Politico, 30/03/2020: Social distance, Swedish style
https://www.politico.eu/article/social-distance-swedish-style/
-
ECFR: Commentary, 09/04/2020: Sweden goes it alone: The EU’s coronavirus exception
https://www.ecfr.eu/article/commentary_sweden_goes_it_alone_the_eus_coronavirus_exception
-
Euronews, 22/04/2020: Sweden's coronavirus strategy: Right or wrong?
https://www.euronews.com/2020/04/22/sweden-s-coronavirus-strategy-right-or-wrong
-
LSE: Institute of Global Affairs: Event, 22/04/2020: The Swedish Exception: early lessons from Sweden's different approach to COVID-19 (via Youtube)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dsiVWlN7KWo
-
The Conversation (UK), 23/04/2020: Coronavirus: are we underestimating how many people have had it? Sweden thinks so
https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-are-we-underestimating-how-many-people-have-had-it-sweden-thinks-so-136893
-
BBC News, 25/04/2020: Coronavirus: Has Sweden got its science right?
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-52395866
-
Chatham House: The World Today, April&May 2020: Sweden: Living with coronavirus Light touch or lagom?
https://www.chathamhouse.org/publications/twt/sweden-living-coronavirus
-
ARTE TV: Reportage: Coronavirus in Sweden (May 2020)
https://www.arte.tv/en/videos/092187-004-A/re-coronavirus-in-sweden/
-
National Geographic: History Dispatches, 05/05/2020: Sweden still hasn't locked down. But normal life is a luxury for only a few
https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/2020/05/sweden-hasnt-locked-down-but-normal-life-is-a-luxury/
-
Forbes, 14/05/2020: Why Sweden’s Approach To Coronavirus May Not Be What You Think
https://www.forbes.com/sites/heatherfarmbrough/2020/05/14/why-swedens-approach-to-coronavirus-may-not-be-what-you--think/
-
The Economist, 16/05/2020: Is Sweden’s approach to covid-19 wise or reckless?
https://www.economist.com/europe/2020/05/16/is-swedens-approach-to-covid-19-wise-or-reckless
-
Euro|topics, May 2020: The Swedish way - model or dead end?
https://www.eurotopics.net/en/237772/
-
The Guardian, 22/05/2020: Why Sweden is unlikely to make a U-turn on its controversial Covid-19 strategy
https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2020/may/22/sweden-u-turn-controversial-covid-19-strategy
-
The Independent (UK), 01/06/2020: Coronavirus tracked: Charting Sweden’s disastrous no-lockdown strategy
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/coronavirus-lockdown-sweden-death-rate-worst-country-covid-19-a9539206.html
-
International Monetary Fund (IMF): IMF Country Focus, 04/06/2020: Sweden: Will COVID-19 Economics be Different?
https://www.imf.org/en/News/Articles/2020/06/01/na060120-sweden-will-covid-19-economics-be-different
-
Politico, 09/06/2020: Sweden’s lockdown paradox
https://www.politico.eu/article/sweden-coronavirus-lockdown-paradox/
-
New Statesman, 11/06/2020: How Sweden’s herd immunity strategy has backfired
https://www.newstatesman.com/world/europe/2020/06/how-sweden-s-herd-immunity-strategy-has-backfired
-
Euronews, 11/06/2020: Is fragile support for Sweden's COVID-19 strategy fracturing?
https://www.euronews.com/2020/06/11/analysis-is-fragile-support-for-sweden-s-covid-19-strategy-fracturing
-
British Medical Journal (No 369, 12 June 2020): Has Sweden’s controversial covid-19 strategy been successful?
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m2376
-
Euro|topics, June 2020: Sweden: the self-doubt of a model state
https://www.eurotopics.net/en/242251/
-
Foreign Policy, 23/06/2020: Sweden’s Coronavirus Failure Started Long Before the Pandemic
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/06/23/sweden-coronavirus-failure-anders-tegnell-started-long-before-the-pandemic/
-
University of Oxford: Faculty of Law Blog, 29/06/2020: Calling Out the Law with a Lie: Community Perspectives on Precarity, Welfare and Law in Times of Covid-19 in Sweden
https://www.law.ox.ac.uk/research-subject-groups/centre-criminology/centreborder-criminologies/blog/2020/06/calling-out-law
-
Politico, 03/07/2020: What Sweden can teach us about coronavirus
https://www.politico.eu/article/sweden-coronavirus-lessons/
-
The Economist, 04/07/2020: Covid-19 is scrambling Scandinavian stereotypes
https://www.economist.com/europe/2020/07/04/covid-19-is-scrambling-scandinavian-stereotypes
-
Open Access Government, 07/07/2020: No lockdown: Sweden now faces increased COVID-19 deaths
https://www.openaccessgovernment.org/no-lockdown/89922/
-
Blog Droit Européen, 20/07/2020: Covid-19 pandemic and data protection issues in Sweden by Patricia Jonason
https://blogdroiteuropeen.com/2020/07/20/covid-19-pandemic-and-data-protection-issues-in-sweden-by-patricia-jonason/
-
Euronews, 28/07/2020: Is Sweden’s coronavirus strategy working after all?
https://www.euronews.com/2020/07/28/sweden-s-coronavirus-spread-slows-but-immunity-still-a-puzzle
-
openDemocracy: Can Europe Make It?, 10/08/2020: Responsibility of the Swedish left for Sweden’s COVID-19 tragedy
https://www.opendemocracy.net/en/can-europe-make-it/responsibility-of-the-swedish-left-for-swedens-covid-19-tragedy/
-
International Centre for Defence and Security (ICDS): Commentary, 27/08/2020: COVID-19 Policy in Sweden: Disaster or Object of Admiration?
https://icds.ee/en/covid-19-policy-in-sweden-disaster-or-object-of-admiration/
-
CEPR: VoxEU: Article, 12/09/2020: Labour market effects of COVID-19: Sweden and its Scandinavian neighbours
https://voxeu.org/article/labour-market-effects-covid-19-sweden-and-its-neighbours
-
The Guardian, 25/09/2020: What lessons can Europe learn from Sweden's Covid-19 experience?
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2020/sep/25/what-lessons-can-europe-learn-from-sweden-covid-19-experience
-
Martens Centre for European Studies: In Brief, 28/09/2020: The Constitutional Basis for Sweden’s Exceptional COVID-19 Policy
https://www.martenscentre.eu/publication/constitutional-basis-swedens-exceptional-covid-19-policy/
-
The British Medical Journal (BMJ): September 2020: Covid-19: Comparing Sweden’s response with the UK’s is “misleading,” experts argue
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m3765
-
CNN News, 29/09/2020: Some countries are eying Sweden's 'light-touch' Covid response. It's a gamble that could backfire
https://edition.cnn.com/2020/09/28/europe/sweden-uk-coronavirus-immunity-analysis-gbr-intl/
-
ING Think: Article, 30/09/2020: What Europe’s Covid-19 spike means for Sweden
https://think.ing.com/articles/coronavirus-fears-are-rising-in-europe-but-what-about-sweden/
-
The Economist: Leaders, 10/10/2020: The real lessons from Sweden’s approach to covid-19
https://www.economist.com/leaders/2020/10/10/the-real-lessons-from-swedens-approach-to-covid-19
-
The British Medical Journal (BMJ), November 2020: Covid-19: What Sweden taught Scandinavia for the second wave
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmj.m4456
-
Reuters: Factcheck, 02/12/2020: Sweden has not achieved herd immunity, is not proof that lockdowns are useless
https://www.reuters.com/article/uk-factcheck-prageru-sweden-herd-immunit-idUSKBN28C2R7
-
Institut Montaigne: Interview, 11/12/2020: Covid-19, Round 2: Sweden Misunderstood. Three questions for Ulrika Björkstén
https://www.institutmontaigne.org/en/blog/covid-19-round-2-sweden-misunderstood
-
The Conversation (UK), 17/12/2020: Sweden and Japan are paying the price for COVID exceptionalism
https://theconversation.com/sweden-and-japan-are-paying-the-price-for-covid-exceptionalism-151974
-
Byline Times, 18/12/2020: How Sweden Abandoned Its Most Vulnerable And Its Principles
https://bylinetimes.com/2020/12/18/how-sweden-abandoned-its-most-vulnerable-and-its-principles/
-
The New Statesman, 21/12/2020: Sweden’s Covid-19 failures have exposed the myths of the lockdown-sceptics
https://www.newstatesman.com/world/2020/12/swedens-covid-19-failures-have-exposed-the-myths-of-the-lockdown-sceptics
-
The Lancet: Comment, 22/12/2020: COVID-19 and the Swedish enigma
https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(20)32750-1
-
Foreign Policy, 22/12/2020: The Inside Story of How Sweden Botched Its Coronavirus Response
https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/12/22/sweden-coronavirus-covid-response/
-
ECPR: The Loop, 14/03/2022: Explaining Swedish exceptionalism in its pandemic response
https://theloop.ecpr.eu/explaining-swedish-exceptionalism-in-its-pandemic-response/
|