Sweden's controversial herd immunity strategy against COVID-19 is earning mixed reactions from world experts. For some, the strategy looks to be ineffective since Sweden has higher death rate side-by-side its confirmed cases. On the other hand, there are nations with strict lockdown measures but are doing far worse compared to the Scandinavian country. And, in as far as economic damage is concerned, Sweden is emerging almost unscathed from the pandemic.
For context, Sweden did not close its schools, stores, and restaurants amid the pandemic. The government has just called for its people to practice social distancing on their own. As for restaurants, only those with table service are open. Events with more than 50 people are prohibited but overall life simply goes on.
Sweden chose to pursue herd immunity where a large percentage of a population could possibly get immune to the infection. When this happens, these people could provide protection for individuals who did not develop immunity.
World experts are expressing opposing views on whether Sweden's strategy works. As of Thursday, the Scandinavian country has 24,623 confirmed cases and 3,040 deaths. Half of those deaths happened in nursing homes. The country conducts 30,000 tests per week.
The number of deaths translates to a rate of 297.16 for every 1 million citizens, according to Johns Hopkins University. Some observers argued that this is a higher rate of coronavirus deaths compared to Denmark, Norway, and Finland.
On the other hand, when the population is factored in, Sweden also has a population of around 10 million while the three other Scandinavian countries have an average of 5 million residents respectively. The three also implemented tougher lockdowns compared to Sweden.
For context, Denmark has 10,281 cases and 506 deaths. Norway has 7,996 cases and 216 deaths. Finland has 5,573 cases and 252 deaths.
All across Europe, Sweden's cases and deaths are way lower than nations with large populations such as the United Kingdom, France, and Spain. The latter are hardest-hit nations in the continent even with their tough lockdown measures.
The closest comparison would be Belgium with a similar population to Sweden but has 50,781 cases and 8,339 deaths. Belgium is also under strict lockdown.
On Thursday, Anders Tegnell, Sweden's State epidemiologist reported that the data shows the country is already flattening the curve. Also, there is no drastic economic impact to date. More importantly, the country's health system wasn't overwhelmed. There are enough beads and facilities for patients.
Tegnell said the only realization the Swedish government had is that it should have focused more on the situation in nursing homes. Officials could have done more to protect its elderly.
Still, when the overall situation is assessed, Tegnell said Sweden proved that schools can remain open or that the economy and society can go on amid the pandemic.
Meanwhile, analysts from Goldman Sachs warned that countries should not copy what Sweden did. They explain that the country's situation is unique in that it has a high proportion of single-occupancy households and a low proportion of multi-generational households. Simply put, the country isn't crowded. There are relatively fewer people living in the country and this might be the biggest factor why the transmission rate is also slower.
In the end, overcrowded regions should not take after Sweden. And, there is also the possibility that if Sweden followed lockdown measures, it could have actually prevented thousands of its citizens from getting infected and dying.
