In Sweden, which never had a Covid-19 lockdown or general mask mandate, has the number of C-19 deaths risen or fallen with the proliferation of the Delta variant?
Correct Answer
The Covid-19 Delta variant was first detected in Sweden during early April 2021, and by mid-June, it accounted for two-thirds of all C-19 cases in the nation. During this period, C-19 deaths fell from an average of 22 per day to 3. By late June, this dropped to an average of 1 death per day and has stayed at or below this level through the latest available data (8/23/21). Unlike the vast bulk of the world, the government of Sweden never locked people down or issued a general mask mandate. Instead, it chose to pursue a strategy of building herd immunity, while media outlets like the New York Times called it "the world's cautionary tale." Now, journalists and politicians are blaming the Delta variant for rising C-19 deaths in nations that locked down, while ignoring the falling deaths in Sweden, which took the opposite approach.