CAN BECOME LAW: If the government listens to the Norwegian Directorate of Health’s recommendations, the national liquor ban can be lifted. Photo: Fredrik Solstad
The Norwegian Directorate of Health recommends starting the reopening of Norway on Friday. This entails, among other things, the lifting of the national liquor ban.
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The Norwegian Directorate of Health recommends that the preparatory phase (step 1) of the national reopening plan be implemented from 16 April, they write in their professional advice to the government. FHI recommends that the reopening be done from 15 April, ie one day earlier.
The professional basis from the Norwegian Directorate of Health and NIPH was published on Tuesday at 2 pm, two hours before the government is to present new national councils.
Will strengthen advice on domestic travel
The Directorate also recommends that the scheme of regional and local measures in areas of the country with high infection pressure be continued. Both FHI and the Norwegian Directorate of Health also believe that the council on avoiding domestic travel should be strengthened – especially in and out of central Eastern Norway, which is now the “epicenter of the epidemic”.
Wondering what advice and rules apply wherever you are? Check VG’s overview here!
The national liquor ban can be lifted
The national liquor ban that was introduced by the government on 25 March can be lifted, the Norwegian Directorate of Health states in its recommendation to the government.
“The Norwegian Directorate of Health believes it is necessary to continue national measures in the future, but that it is now possible to phase out the measures that were introduced before the Easter holidays,” the Norwegian Directorate of Health writes.
Later Tuesday, the government will inform about the corona situation at a press conference. The Norwegian Directorate of Health and the Norwegian Institute of Public Health have submitted their recommendations to the Government ahead of the press conference.
FHI believes that phase two should be assessed earlier
If the government agrees to start the first stage of the reopening, we are well on track with what it is most optimistic time scenario for when the country can reopen.
The government has been frugal in setting dates for reopening, but has previously said that phase two can start in the second half of May and that it will wait at least three weeks before moving on to the next step. At best, this has meant that we can embark on the fourth and final reopening phase at the end of June.
However, FHI now recommends that step two should be considered already three weeks after step one has been completed. In that case, it will mean that the second step of the reopening can be considered as early as the first week of May if the government agrees to this.
This is step 1
The first step in the reopening plan is a preparatory step. It will then return to the level of measures we had before 25 March when new national measures were introduced to deal with the rising infection in the weeks before Easter.
– Since the areas in Eastern Norway with very high infection pressure are already covered by Chapter 5 measures (or equivalent in Oslo), relief in the national measures will not be important for these areas, NIPH emphasizes in the assessment.
This involves step 1:
- Up to 5 guests in private homes
- Pouring until kl. 22, with requirements for food service
- Events that only bring together people from one municipality can be carried out
- The distance recommendation is changed back to 1 meter
- Up to 100 people at indoor events, such as cultural and sports events, conferences and worship services, where everyone sits in fixed designated places
- Up to 200 people at outdoor events, but 200 people times 3 cohorts if the audience sits in fixed assigned seats
