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Denmark Expands Coronavirus Testing Using Makeshift Facilities

Denmark Expands Coronavirus Testing Using Makeshift Facilities

(Bloomberg) --

Denmark is expanding its testing for coronavirus to anyone who displays even mild symptoms as a result of added capacity, Health Minister Magnus Heunicke said Monday.

The country previously tested only people with severe symptoms, or those with mild symptoms and close ties to the elderly or patients suffering from chronic diseases.

Speaking at a press conference in Copenhagen on Monday, Heunicke said anyone displaying even mild symptoms should contact their doctor by telephone. If told to do so, they would be able to undergo testing in the new facilities, which include makeshift labs in white tents being set up across the country.

Denmark was one of the first countries in Europe to impose strict measures to fight the outbreak of Covid-19. As a result it has also been among the first to initiate a slow return to normality, with schools, hairdressers and dentists reopening after a month-long shutdown.

Denmark had 131 new confirmed cases of Covid-19 on Monday, bringing the total to 7,515 confirmed cases and 364 related deaths.

The country’s health service currently has enough ventilators to deal with the most extreme cases, health officials said.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.