The Swedish death toll in the covid-19 pandemic exceeds 15,000
STOCKHOLM, October 26 (Reuters) – Sweden has registered 9 new COVID-19 deaths since Friday, which postpones the death toll since the beginning of the pandemic to over 15,000, data showed on Tuesday.
The grim milestone was reached with deaths that began to creep up again after a summer break in the pandemic, although they are still well below the peak levels seen last winter.
Sweden has registered 2,275 new cases since last Friday. On Tuesday, 25 people were cared for in intensive care units, a decrease from 32 a week ago.
While the number of cases has fluctuated somewhat, the Nordic country has so far not seen an increase in the number of infections of the size registered in some other European countries, such as Sweden’s Baltic neighbors, in recent weeks.
About 85% of all Swedes aged 16 and up have received a first vaccination and 80% have received two injections or more.
Sweden, which has rejected lockdowns, was hit hard by the first two waves of the pandemic and saw per capita deaths many times higher than in other Nordic countries, even though it was lower than in most European countries.
Reporting by Johan Ahlander; editing by Niklas Pollard
Our standards: Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.