We Can Expect 600 New Cases a Day

Már Kristjánsson, head of Landspítali National University Hospital’s infectious diseases division, tells mbl.is that if the Omicron variant of the coronavirus spreads as quickly in Iceland as in neighboring countries, we can expect to see 600 new confirmed cases a day.

Yesterday, a total of 195 new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Iceland (domestic and border cases combined) and 211 the day before. 

“It’s not looking good,” Már states. “The experience of our neighboring countries tells us that those numbers are going to rise exponentially, and we can expect this to develop the way it has in Denmark. Then, we could be seeing about 600 new cases a day. If that happens, there will be 6,000 new cases during a period of ten days and 12,000 new cases during a period of 20 days.”

Should that occur, the whole community must react, he states. Last night, there were 12 COVID-19 patients at Landspítali, one of them on a respirator in intensive care.

Assuming that one percent of those infected will require hospitalization, we can expect 120 people to require hospitalization at once, Már suggests.

He states that in order to halt the spread of the virus, stricter disease prevention rules must be enacted, residents must be encouraged to get their booster shots of the vaccine, and the vaccination of children aged 5-11 must begin.

At least 160 cases of the Omicron variant have been confirmed in Iceland, Már reveals. The majority of people diagnosed were not in quarantine when their cases were confirmed. “What that tells me is that the Omicron variant has for sure spread throughout society,” he states. “That’s what’s driving the exponential growth.”