Finland Extends Omicron Restrictions Until Mid-February - Government

HELSINKI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 19th January, 2022) The current COVID-19 restrictions in Finland, which were due to be lifted by the end of this month, have been extended by two more weeks until mid-February, the government said on Tuesday.

"To safeguard the carrying capacity of health care, the government decided to extend the current restrictive measures and recommendations for two weeks until mid-February. Restrictive measures are still needed due to the hospital workloads, and to provide time for third vaccination doses," the government said in a statement.

However, the government decided to end remote learning and intends to cancel internal border controls, adopted in late December over the spread of the Omicron coronavirus strain, as travel is believed to not generally affect the epidemiological situation in the country, the statement read. Both measures will be lifted on January 31.

Other restrictions generally concern work schedules of certain public places, including catering facilities, restaurants, and gyms.