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COVID-19

Denmark registers 23,000 new Covid-19 cases in one day

Denmark recorded 23,228 new cases of Covid-19 in its latest daily totals on Wednesday, breaking the previous record set on Monday by over 7,000.

Published: 29 December 2021 15:37 CET
People queue for Covid-19 tests in Denmark in December 2021. The country registered over 23,000 new cases on December 29th.
People queue for Covid-19 tests in Denmark in December 2021. The country registered over 23,000 new cases on December 29th.Photo: Henning Bagger/Ritzau Scanpix

The figure eclipses the previous record of 16,164, which was set on Monday.

In capital Copenhagen, the seven-day incidence for the virus is 2,465 per 100,000 residents.

Even before the towering figures posted on Wednesday, Denmark was this week to be reported to have the highest reported Covid-19 infection rates in the world.

“The high infection rate today (Wednesday) can be attributed to a higher PCR test activity just after Christmas,” the national infectious disease agency State Serum Institute (SSI) said in a statement as it issued the latest numbers.

The 23,228 new cases were found amongst 189,512 PCR tests, giving a positivity rate of 12.26 percent. That is considerably higher than earlier in the pandemic but in line with data from Monday and Tuesday this week.

High demand means that authorities are currently giving priority for PCR tests to people with symptoms of the virus or who are close contacts to confirmed cases.

An expert said in response to Wednesday’s figures that “we should all expect to be infected (in Denmark)”.

“When infection numbers are so high, that reflects widespread community transmission,” Henrik Nielsen, professor and senior medical consultant at Aalborg University Hospital’s infectious diseases department, told news wire Ritzau.

“In my view, that means we should all expect to be infected,” Nielsen said.

The total number of persons in hospital with Covid-19 increased by 9 on Wednesday and is now 675. The peak number of admitted patients from the winter 2020 wave reached 964 on January 4th this year, amid far lower infection numbers.

At that time, only a very low percentage of the population had been vaccinated against the coronavirus.

“We find a little bit of hope in hospitals not seeing a parallel increase in hospitalisations. But we are starting to get to the level where it begins to hurt,” Nielsen said.

“When you look at the total of admitted patients with and without the vaccine respectively, the risk (of hospitalisation) is five times higher if you don’t have the vaccine,” the senior medical consultant added.

READ ALSO: What are Denmark’s Covid-19 rules for New Year’s Eve?

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COVID-19

Who should get vaccinated against Covid and flu in Denmark and when?

It is still free to get a Covid-19 vaccine in Denmark if you are over the age of 65 or have a health condition, with the health authorities now running Covid and flu vaccinations together. Here's what you need to know.

Published: 26 October 2023 11:10 CEST
Who should get vaccinated against Covid and flu in Denmark and when?

Who is being offered a vaccine for Covid-19 or flu this autumn? 

According to the information on the Danish Health Authority’s website, Covid-19 and flu vaccines are being offered to: 

  • People over the age of 65
  • People under the age of 65 who have a health condition which puts them at increased risk. You can find a list of the long-term health conditions deemed a risk here. 
  • Pregnant women in the 2nd and 3rd trimester

Children between 2 and 6 years of age are being offered a special flu vaccine for children, which is administered as a nose spray, but not the Covid vaccine (unless they fit one of the categories above). 

Those who have retired early, for whatever reason, are also being offered the flu vaccine but not a Covid-19 vaccine.  

People over the age of 65 and the parents of children between the ages of 2 and 6 will automatically receive an invitation to get vaccinated though their digital postbox at borger.dk, e-Boks and mit.dk.

People in the other eligible categories will not receive an invitation. 

If you have not yet received an invitation, do not worry, as invitations are being staggered over October and the start of November.  

READ ALSO: 

When and where can I get vaccinated? 

This year’s autumn vaccination campaign started on October 1st and will continue until January 15th. 

You can get vaccinated at one of over 50 regional vaccination sites all over Denmark, or at the over 280 local pharmacies which are signed up to be part of the programme. 

Residents of care homes for the elderly and others in need will be offered vaccinated at their home.

You can log in and book an appointment at your nearest centre or pharmacy at Denmark’s official vaccination website www.vacciner.dk.

Is it possible to get vaccinated against both flu and Covid-19 at the same time? 

The Danish Health Authority has judged that it is safe to receive vaccines against both flu and Covid-19 at the same time, but the two vaccines cannot be mixed in the same syringe, so you will receive two separate injections. 

Is vaccination compulsory? 

No. Although the strongly recommends everyone in the various risk categories to get vaccinated, it is up to every individual whether to do so. 

Is it possible to get vaccinated even if I am not over 65 or in a risk group? 

It is no longer possible to get vaccinated against Covid-19 or flu through Denmark’s national vaccination programme if you are not in one of the recommended categories, after the country’s health authorities stopped offering paid vaccinations.  

But it remains possible to get vaccinated at a private vaccination centre, such as the SikkerRejse chain found in most Danish towns. The chain, which has a waiting list, offers doses of the latest Comirnaty Omicron XBB.1.5 vaccine for a total price of 995 kroner. 

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