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HEALTH

Coronavirus deaths in Denmark rise by 22

There have been 22 new deaths from the coronavirus in Denmark since Friday, bringing the national total to 161, according to Statens Serum Institute.

Published: 4 April 2020 15:47 CEST
Coronavirus deaths in Denmark rise by 22
A doctor performs a mouth swab on a patient to test for Covid-19 in a new tent extension of Rigshospitalet, Copenhagen, April 2, 2020: AFP

There are now 4077 confirmed cases of the coronavirus in Denmark –  320 more than Friday. This figure may be much higher because not everyone with symptoms is tested.

While the number of deaths and confirmed cases have increased, the number of hospital admissions dropped for the third day. As of Saturday, 507 patients were in hospital with coronavirus in Denmark, ten fewer than on Friday. Of those, 142 were in intensive care, one less than Friday and 112 needed a respirator.

Earlier in the week, the Danish Health Authority changed its coronavirus strategy to allow doctors to order tests for those with mild symptoms, if they live with vulnerable people or are for some reason unable or unlikely to self-isolate.

Currently, the country is testing only those with moderate to severe symptoms, those in risk groups such as the elderly and chronically ill, and health personnel.

Helene Bilsted Probst, who runs the authority's planning department, told Danish public broadcaster DR on Thursday that she believed the new guidelines could more than triple the number of tests carried out. 

On Thursday, the Danish Regions for the first time achieved its ambition to conduct at least 5000 coronavirus tests per day. The number is expected to increase to 10,000 next week and after Easter the aim is to test 15,000 patients per day.

On Monday, Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announced that Denmark will be able to begin “a gradual, quiet and controlled opening” after Easter, if numbers remain stable and people adhere to distancing advice.

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HEALTH

Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

Denmark's government has struck a deal with four other parties to raise the point in a pregnancy from which a foetus can be aborted from 12 weeks to 18 weeks, in the first big change to Danish abortion law in 50 years.

Published: 3 May 2024 08:06 CEST
Danish parties agree to raise abortion limit to 18 weeks

The government struck the deal with the Socialist Left Party, the Red Green Alliance, the Social Liberal Party and the Alternative party, last week with the formal announcement made on Monday  

“In terms of health, there is no evidence for the current week limit, nor is there anything to suggest that there will be significantly more or later abortions by moving the week limit,” Sophie Løhde, Denmark’s Minister of the Interior and Health, said in a press release announcing the deal.

The move follows the recommendations of Denmark’s Ethics Council, which in September 2023 proposed raising the term limit, pointing out that Denmark had one of the most restrictive abortion laws in Western Europe. 

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Under the deal, the seven parties, together with the Liberal Alliance and the Conservatives, have also entered into an agreement to replace the five regional abortion bodies with a new national abortion board, which will be based in Aarhus. 

From July 1st, 2025, this new board will be able to grant permission for abortions after the 18th week of pregnancy if there are special considerations to take into account. 

The parties have also agreed to grant 15-17-year-olds the right to have an abortion without parental consent or permission from the abortion board.

Marie Bjerre, Denmark’s minister for Digitalization and Equality, said in the press release that this followed logically from the age of sexual consent, which is 15 years old in Denmark. 

“Choosing whether to have an abortion is a difficult situation, and I hope that young women would get the support of their parents. But if there is disagreement, it must ultimately be the young woman’s own decision whether she wants to be a mother,” she said. 

The bill will be tabled in parliament over the coming year with the changes then coming into force on June 1st, 2025.

The right to free abortion was introduced in Denmark in 1973. 

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