Thread by @bopinion

Every country has at one point dared to believe they’ve figured out how to beat SARS-CoV-2, until reality sets in.

Sweden is taking its turn bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

After a summer lull, the country famous for its voluntary “trust-based” approach to social distancing is getting battered by a Covid winter wave.

Its 7-day average of daily cases & deaths per capita is currently outpacing the U.K., France and Spain bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

🇸🇪Sweden’s total deaths of 7,514 are, on a per-capita basis, much lower than those countries, but they far outstrip its Nordic neighbors:

🇩🇰5x Denmark’s rate
🇫🇮9x Finland’s
🇳🇴10x Norway’s
bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

With intensive-care beds in Stockholm almost full, the prime minister implored citizens in a rare televised address to follow tough new restrictions to alleviate overstretched hospitals and save Christmas bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

🍻Public gatherings are capped at 8 people
📚Schools have been shut
🚫Alcohol sales are banned after 10 p.m.

Much is still recommendation rather than rule, but the government has proposed a law that would give it the power to close stores if necessary bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

Whatever was working in Sweden isn’t anymore.

Though it suffered a high death rate during the first wave, there was optimism it was an upfront cost in return for less economic pain and higher immunity levels. The new wave is a nasty development bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

Sweden is simply falling into the norm for this public health crisis:

🇩🇪Germany is going through a similar reversal of fortunes, with daily deaths at their highest levels since the start of the pandemic
🇨🇭Switzerland is also being hit harder
bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

The reality is that all countries have had to learn from mistakes:

Italy & France have softened their lockdown approach
Sweden taught others to consider more humane & more stable restrictions, but learned that a lack of intervention can become a problem bloom.bg/3h7UyIK

As nations tighten restrictions ahead of Christmas, the ideal of a perfect European “model” is looking increasingly unattainable.

Until vaccines get rolled out at scale, the danger for people everywhere will be imagining they’ve got this virus beaten bloom.bg/3h7UyIK