Norway Says Widespread Coronavirus Testing ‘Unnecessary’

The Norwegian Institute of Public Health (FHI) has said it does not recommend widespread testing in the country’s battle against the coronavirus.

Norway had previously planned to roll out enough capacity to test up to 300,000 people per week, meaning—in theory at least—the entire population could have been tested in less than two months.

Norway’s low infection rate

However, authorities now consider the effort unnecessary because of the country’s low infection rate. As of May 25, Norway has tested 234,637 people for COVID-19, of which only 8,352 have tested positive. 235 people in Norway have died.

In a statement, FHI explained that widespread testing of healthy people, such as all employees within a company, “has no purpose.” As previously, tests will still be reserved for those who have symptoms of coronavirus, healthcare workers, people who work in elderly care homes and those in certain risk groups.

Following the introduction of restrictions in mid-March, Norwegian society is now on the path back to normality. Two weeks ago, the prime minister presented a timetable for lifting the various restrictive measures. Aside from major public events, much of Norwegian life will be back to normal by June 15, although borders remain closed to tourists.

Unreliability of tests

There is more behind the FHI recommendation that a low rate of infection. FHI doctor Joakim Øverbø explained that there is a high probability of a false positive with the current tests, whereby a positive result turns out to be false: “Given today's contagion situation in Norway, health professionals must test around 12,000 random people to find one positive case of COVID-19. There will be about 15 positive test responses, but 14 of these will be false positives. In such situations, health professionals should not rely on a positive result until they have taken a new test to confirm it.”

FHI emphasizes that its recommendation does not apply to elderly care homes. Residents—at high-risk of infection—typically show few symptoms and often have trouble communicating any issues. If an infection is confirmed, Øverbø recommended that everyone associated with the unit at the care home where the infection has been found should be tested. “If the test answer is negative and you still suspect COVID-19, you should take a new test,” he added.