Danes halt virus restrictions; rest of Europe a patchwork

By JAN M. OLSEN
Associated Press

COPENHAGEN, Denmark (AP) — Denmark is scraping most pandemic restrictions as the country no longer considers COVID-19 to be “a socially critical disease.” The reason for that is that while the omicron variant is surging in Denmark it’s not placing a heavy burden on the health care system and the country has a high vaccination rate. On Tuesday, the wearing of face masks was no longer mandatory on public transportation and shops and a digital health pass is no longer needed to enter nightclubs or eat indoors at restaurants. Elsewhere in Europe, there is a patchwork of different approaches to the pandemic, with some nations relaxing virus restrictions and others tightening them. Austria has ordered a national vaccine mandate.