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Finland Backtracks on Forcing Quarantine on Most Travelers

Finland Backtracks on Forcing Quarantine on Most Travelers

Finland’s government won’t impose blanket quarantines on travelers, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said, backtracking from comments by a minister in her government.

Authorities are already able to impose mandatory quarantines when such measures are deemed necessary, but no political decision will be taken to force all travelers from certain countries to isolation for 14 days, Marin told reporters on Wednesday. Such measures remain voluntary for the most part, she said.

“Doctors treating infectious diseases will decide whether it’s warranted to force Covid-19 tests on a group of travelers arriving by an airplane or a ship, or individual passengers, or to force quarantine on them if they won’t agree to a voluntary one,” she said. “The government has no legal means to control this.”

Krista Kiuru, minister for family affairs and social services, said on Monday passengers face at most three months jail time if they resist the quarantine, and that only 25 countries would be exempt from the rules. Her comments took key ministers by surprise and sparked questions over whether the government was overstepping its mandate.

Finland’s Covid-19 situation remains contained with few cases reported daily. There have been a total of about 7,600 confirmed infections.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.