'Pure madness': Denmark's testing strategy costing 2bn kroner a month
According to a leaked briefing document from the Ministry of Justice, Denmark is currently spending 2bn kroner (€270m) a month on the free coronavirus tests offered across the country, drawing criticism from opposition politicians.
Denmark's coronavirus passport system has since mid-April required those who have not been vaccinated to show a recent negative coronavirus test before spending time in bars, cafés, restaurants, museums and more, leading to a rise in the number of tests to more than 750,000 per day.
"This is as much as we spend on the entire of Denmark's defence, and more than we receive in the top tax bracket," complained Rasmus Jarlov, an MP for the opposition Conservative Party on Twitter of the cost. "Support for such decisions can only be explained with psychology. All rationality is gone."
Det er lige så meget, som vi bruger på hele det danske forsvar, og mere end vi får ind i topskat. Opbakningen til den slags beslutninger kan kun forklares med psykologi. Al rationalitet er væk.
(Berlingske Tidende mandag) pic.twitter.com/PZu7MlI0od
— Rasmus Jarlov (@RasmusJarlov) May 30, 2021
The Berlingske newspaper on Monday revealed the high cost of Denmark's testing programme after it was leaked a briefing document on testing that had been circulated inside the Danish parliament.
Nick Hækkerup, the country's justice minister, said in a written comment to Berlingske that the high cost justified by the benefits, and that it would soon fall off as more people are vaccinated and the need for testing decreases from the current high rates of up to 750,000 tests day.
But Peter Kamp Busk, professor of molecular biology at Roskilde University and an expert on testing, questioned this, arguing that there was little evidence that the huge number of tests being carried out in Denmark were helping control the epidemic.
"It's pure madness what we have going on in Denmark. It's completely insane and it's basically throwing money straight out the window," he said. "It has not worked, and there is no evidence that it works."
READ ALSO: What you need to know about Danish Covid-19 vaccine and test documentation
In his research, he has been unable to find a correlation between the level of testing and falls or rises in the number of people infected.
"There is no correlation between the number of infections and the number of PCR tests. It is not connected at all," he said earlier this month.
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Denmark's coronavirus passport system has since mid-April required those who have not been vaccinated to show a recent negative coronavirus test before spending time in bars, cafés, restaurants, museums and more, leading to a rise in the number of tests to more than 750,000 per day.
"This is as much as we spend on the entire of Denmark's defence, and more than we receive in the top tax bracket," complained Rasmus Jarlov, an MP for the opposition Conservative Party on Twitter of the cost. "Support for such decisions can only be explained with psychology. All rationality is gone."
Det er lige så meget, som vi bruger på hele det danske forsvar, og mere end vi får ind i topskat. Opbakningen til den slags beslutninger kan kun forklares med psykologi. Al rationalitet er væk.
— Rasmus Jarlov (@RasmusJarlov) May 30, 2021
(Berlingske Tidende mandag) pic.twitter.com/PZu7MlI0od
The Berlingske newspaper on Monday revealed the high cost of Denmark's testing programme after it was leaked a briefing document on testing that had been circulated inside the Danish parliament.
Nick Hækkerup, the country's justice minister, said in a written comment to Berlingske that the high cost justified by the benefits, and that it would soon fall off as more people are vaccinated and the need for testing decreases from the current high rates of up to 750,000 tests day.
But Peter Kamp Busk, professor of molecular biology at Roskilde University and an expert on testing, questioned this, arguing that there was little evidence that the huge number of tests being carried out in Denmark were helping control the epidemic.
"It's pure madness what we have going on in Denmark. It's completely insane and it's basically throwing money straight out the window," he said. "It has not worked, and there is no evidence that it works."
READ ALSO: What you need to know about Danish Covid-19 vaccine and test documentation
In his research, he has been unable to find a correlation between the level of testing and falls or rises in the number of people infected.
"There is no correlation between the number of infections and the number of PCR tests. It is not connected at all," he said earlier this month.
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