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On Tuesday August 25, Health Director Bjørn Guldvog took the stage in the Marble Hall of the Ministry of Climate and Environment with a recommendation to the population: all travelers from red countries should be tested. This is due to the proportion of import infections to Norway from the red countries.
“Test everyone from the red earth?” it was written in an email from the Ministerial Counselor of the Ministry of Health and Care Services, Bjørn-Inge Larsen. The email entered the inboxes of Guldvog and Director Camilla Stoltenberg of the National Institute of Public Health on the night of Wednesday, August 26.
Larsen linked to an article in Aftenposten about challenges related to test arrivals in Norway and false positive test results. “Compare today’s discussion on entry,” Larsen wrote. “Good entry,” Stoltenberg replied and elaborated:
“Especially the last sentence: ‘The accuracy of a positive test is just one of countless elements that the National Institute of Public Health must take into account when evaluating whether to test visitors to Norway.’ with the Norwegian Health Directorate, “Stoltenberg wrote to Larsen that night.
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Behind the scenes
It is primarily in connection with behind-the-scenes events that Ministerial Advisor Bjørn-Inge Larsen’s name has been mentioned since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out.
Larsen was mentioned in connection with the decision by health authorities to grant deputy health director Geir Stene-Larsen a quarantine exemption, which led to health spikes being quarantined in March. The name has also been mentioned in connection with the fact that Larsen played a central role in the run-up to Norway’s shutdown on March 12.
FHI director Stoltenberg says Larsen is their leader and Guldvog’s.
– As a department councilor, you have a very central role. He is Bjørn Guldvogs and my leader. He runs regular meetings for coordination between the ministry’s underlying activities and is the link between agencies and political leadership, Stoltenberg tells Dagbladet.
Vaccine
On Tuesday, he stepped into public view and took the Marble Hall stage to report on one of the most important issues in the pandemic.
At his side was Health Minister Bent Høie, who stated that Norway aims to vaccinate two-thirds of the adult population.
– It’s not completely unrealistic to believe that, Larsen said. He had just been asked if two-thirds of Norway’s adult population could be vaccinated against covid-19 during 2021. He stressed that the forecasts are based on optimistic estimates from companies and that the process is fraught with uncertainty.
Career
Larsen has faced a pandemic before. He is Guldvog’s predecessor and was Norway’s health director during the swine flu pandemic in 2009. Larsen has also served on the global board of the World Health Organization (WHO).
Several times he has also been named the most powerful person in Health Norway by Dagens Medisin. – more powerful than the then ministers of health.
Since 2012, Larsen has been a ministerial advisor in the Ministry of Health and Care Services. Therefore, he is the most prominent in the civil service and participates in key meetings and advises political leaders. But it is Health Minister Bent Høie who is the supreme leader of the ministry and who makes the decisions.
Dagbladet has contacted the ministry, which has stated that Larsen does not want to contribute to the article.
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Clamping
«Update: VG now says apologize (press notice) and will correct. Several other media also deny it. So far it applies to Dagbladet, NRK and NTB. Greetings Camilla. »
Stoltenberg reported this directly to Larsen from his mobile in the late afternoon of July 3. That afternoon, VG had had a live broadcast with the National Institute of Public Health, after which it was reported that FHI opens to squeeze in with close friends. Soon after, FHI informed Dagbladet that it is not possible to hug all friends.
Health director Guldvog tells Dagbladet that the minister advises good strategic communication.
– The Ministerial Counselor directs the public function of the Ministry and has a very important role. It also directs the work of the ministry to the crisis council of the government. During a crisis, the Minister ensures good strategic communication between underlying agencies such as NIPH and the Norwegian Health Directorate, and the political leadership and government, Guldvog tells Dagbladet.
It says that after the Ministry of Justice became the lead ministry during COVID-19, Larsen set up a morning coordination meeting with the underlying agencies and the special health service.
– Contributes both to internal coordination in the health sector and to a coordinated description of the situation towards the government crisis council, says Guldvog.
