Border Testing At Its Limit; Low Risk Areas Unlikely To Change

Over 2,000 COVID-19 tests taken at the borders have been analysed over the course of the past two days, well ahead of the norm established when the border testing began in mid-June, Morgunblaðið reports. Epidemiologist Þórólfur Guðnason stated in an interview with Morgunblaðið this morning that this was a cause for concern.

“This [2,000 test norm] is not a completely sacred number, as Landspítali itself has pointed out. In recent days, this number has been reviewed, which is a cause for concern, but I have not heard any complaints from Landspítali so far,” says Þórólfur.

In spite of the spike in cases both in Iceland, travellers from so-called “low-risk areas,” i.e. Germany and all of the Nordic countries except Sweden, are still exempted from screening upon arrival in Iceland. This change was announced approximately two weeks prior to the current increase in Iceland’s confirmed cases. Thus, only 2,035 of the 3,400 tourists who arrived yesterday had to get tested. Currently, it seems there is little intention to move any countries back to the list of high-risk areas, provided that there are not large outbreaks in the concerned countries.

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