Minister of Health Bent Høie will allow personnel in critical societal functions, such as health personnel, to enter Norway even if they do not have a certificate for a negative test taken 72 hours before arrival.
“The changes are necessary for personnel from abroad who take care of critical societal functions to enter the country.
“It is a challenge that not everyone has good enough access to tests in their home country, and we depend on them to provide sound health and care services,” Høie noted in a press release.
The regional health authorities have contacted the Ministry of Health and Care Services and said that they are concerned that the requirement for a negative test 72 hours before arrival in the short term could weaken the possibility of providing sound health services and emergency preparedness.
Dependent on foreign labor
Many hospitals depend on healthcare professionals from abroad to provide good healthcare services.
“The changes mean, among other things, that it will be sufficient for health personnel to document that the employer in Norway has defined them as personnel in a critical social function at the border,” Høie pointed out.
In the press release, the ministry wrote that the health trusts will still have a strict testing regime after the personnel arrives in Norway so that the risk of infection is reduced as far as is practically possible.
Exceptions
Employers who recruit personnel in critical societal functions must, in principle, try to facilitate that the personnel can take tests within 72 hours before leaving for Norway.
It is only in cases where it is not practically possible to have such a test that an exception will be granted.
© NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today
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