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More corona reopenings: Universities and workplaces back at full capacity and phasing out corona passes and facemasks

Ben Hamilton
May 18th, 2021


This article is more than 3 years old.

By the end of August, we could all be back at the office … like this nightmare never really happened. Only the nightlife sector will remain closed

He must be a time traveller from the year 2020 (photo: Nickolay Romensky)

Denmark is again waking up today to the news that more corona restrictions will be lifted – this time involving almost every societal gathering location from Friday, with the exception of the nightlife sector.

Among the beneficiaries are the universities, which can fully reopen, casinos, workplaces and swimming pools.

“From May 21, nightclubs and discos will still be closed, but everything else is open – in one form or another,” said a satisfied Konservative leader Søren Pape Poulsen following a cross-party agreement backed by every party in Parliament with the exception of Nye Borgerlige.

And from August, we can expect workplaces to be fully open again and the process of phasing out the mandatory use of facemasks to begin.

All daytime indoor venues can reopen
All indoor sporting and cultural activities previously prevented from reopening now have the green light, providing those who use them have corona passes.

Indoor facilities inside themeparks, zoos and aquariums are now reopening, along with gaming halls, casinos, playgrounds, swimming pools, saunas, steam parks and water parks.

All music and cultural activity schools are permitted to fully open too.

Finally a full green light for uni students
The universities are back! All higher education institutions can open their doors again – at a 100 percent capacity. Previously it was thought they would return at 50 percent.

All schools can also run at a 100 percent capacity, along with all other educational institutions, such as folk high schools and those that offer onsite accommodation.

And by August 1, all workplaces can return to a 100 percent capacity. The return will take place in three phases, with the first (from May 21) welcoming back 20 percent and the second (from June 14) 50 percent.

No requirement for venues to check passes
The corona pass will be phased out next month. More announcements concerning exactly how are expected shortly.

From May 21, it will no longer be necessary to show a pass to obtain admittance to venues such as cinemas, theatres, bars and restaurants – the onus will instead be on the customer to produce one if asked.

Asking all customers to produce one at the door has been a logistical nightmare for many businesses.

A goodbye to facemasks?
Facemasks will be phased out once society is fully vaccinated, which is due to take place on August 29.

The exact details are unclear: for example, whether this will apply to public transport, where masks remained mandatory after the 2020 reopenings.

A phase-out plan will be presented in June.


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A survey carried out by Megafon for TV2 has found that 71 percent of parents have handed over children to daycare in spite of them being sick.

Moreover, 21 percent of those surveyed admitted to medicating their kids with paracetamol, such as Panodil, before sending them to school.

The FOLA parents’ organisation is shocked by the findings.

“I think it is absolutely crazy. It simply cannot be that a child goes to school sick and plays with lots of other children. Then we are faced with the fact that they will infect the whole institution,” said FOLA chair Signe Nielsen.

Pill pushers
At the Børnehuset daycare institution in Silkeborg a meeting was called where parents were implored not to bring their sick children to school.

At Børnehuset there are fears that parents prefer to pack their kids off with a pill without informing teachers.

“We occasionally have children who that they have had a pill for breakfast,” said headteacher Susanne Bødker. “You might think that it is a Panodil more than a vitamin pill, if it is a child who has just been sick, for example.”

Parents sick and tired
Parents, when confronted, often cite pressure at work as a reason for not being able to stay at home with their children.

Many declare that they simply cannot take another day off, as they are afraid of being fired.

Allan Randrup Thomsen, a professor of virology at KU, has heavily criticised the parents’ actions, describing the current situation as a “vicious circle”.

“It promotes the spread of viruses, and it adds momentum to a cycle where parents are pressured by high levels of sick-leave. If they then choose to send the children to daycare while they are still recovering, they keep the epidemic going in daycares, and this in turn puts a greater burden on the parents.”