There are two reasons why the situation in China differs drastically from Norway, says Preben Aavitsland at the National Institute of Public Health.
—
– The epidemic is in full return in Norway. There will be fewer hospitalizations and deaths each week.
This is what chief physician Preben Aavitsland tells Aftenposten.
He believes it shows that the government did the right thing by ending all the measures in February.
– Now the vast majority of adults, and especially the elderly, have received at least two vaccine doses. At least a couple of three million have been infected as well.
This means that Norwegians have good immunity in the future.
– This will protect well against serious illness, almost regardless of which variant should come.
Less immunity in China
China has targets for zero infection. Yet thousands of people are infected every day in the city of Shanghai with 26 million inhabitants. And the number is increasing. On Tuesday, more than 26,000 people were infected in the city.
– Why are so many infected with omikron there now?
– There are not many who are infected given the large population, but they make a lot out of each case, says Aavitsland.
The population of China is less protected due to two reasons:
- Few have immunity, since the country has kept the virus down with strong measures for over two years.
- Fewer have been vaccinated, and the vaccines are weaker than those we use in Norway.
– Thus, they can not let go of the epidemic as we did. Then they will get too many admissions among the elderly, says Aavitsland.
In China, just over half of those over 60 have taken a booster dose. For those over 80, the numbers are even lower.
If China opens up, many elderly people could become seriously ill and die.
Has painted himself into a corner
The superior says the Chinese authorities have painted themselves into a corner with their zero-infection strategy. Each case becomes a defeat, instead of concentrating on preventing serious illness.
– The lesson is that if you first have to keep the epidemic down with strict measures, you must have a plan for the way forward. That plan should be called vaccination. Otherwise, you just have to keep the measures forever, says Aavitsland.
–– Can we be absolutely sure that it is not a variant that comes to us later?
– Yes, there is no other variant in China than with us. The difference is the degree of immunity in the population and the government’s strategy.
– To what extent do you follow what is happening?
– The National Institute of Public Health is responsible for following the situation in Norway and abroad. We have people on duty around the clock all year round.
FHI receives alerts from the Norwegian health service and from international health networks, says Aavitsland.
– We report to the government, the health services and the population if something worrying happens. The government has a plan to deal with a new situation.
–
