4 PEOPLE DEPRIVED OF THEIR LIBERT Y BELONGING TO AN AT-RISK GROUP IN C ASES OF INFEC TION 4 People deprived of their liberty belonging to an at-risk group in cases of infection Each of the investigated agencies may be responsible for people deprived of their liberty who are at risk of contracting a serious illness if they are infected with Covid-19. These are people who are particularly vulnerable due to, for example, age or underlying illnesses. These people are dependent on the agencies taking the appropriate measures to protect them against the spread of infection. 4.1 At-risk groups for serious illness The Public Health Agency of Sweden has published information on its website detailing how certain groups can have more severe symptoms if infected with Covid19.1 For example, they can suffer from pneumonia and have difficulty breathing. An important factor is the age of the infected person and the older the person, the greater the risk of serious illness and death. If the person also has other underlying illnesses, the risk increases further. According to the Public Health Agency of Sweden’s general advice to avoid the spread of Covid-19, which applied during the spring and summer of 2020, people over the age of 70 and those belonging to other at-risk groups should, inter alia, limit their social contacts and avoid places where people gather.2 1 See https://www.folkhalsomyndigheten.se/smittskydd-beredskap/utbrott/aktuella-utbrott/Covid-19/skydda-dig-och-andra/rad-och-information-till-riskgrupper/ (read on 3 September 2020). 2 See the Public Health Agency of Sweden’s regulations and general guidelines (HSLFFS 2020: 12) on everybody’s responsibility to prevent infection of Covid-19 et al. 4.2 Measures to protect people deprived of their liberty who belong to an at-risk group The Parliamentary Ombudsmen’s investigations show that the Prison and Probation Service, the Swedish Migration Agency, the National Board of Forensic Medicine and the National Board of Institutional Care have acted differently with regard to the measures implemented to identify which people belong to an at-risk group for Covid-19 infection and the special measures taken to protect them. During the spring of 2020, the Prison and Probation Service had taken the most far-reaching measures. The Prison and Probation Service At the beginning of April 2020, the management of the Prison and Probation Service estimated that between 600 and 700 of all inmates in its remand prisons and prisons belonged to one of the groups who risk becoming seriously ill if infected with Covid-19. Of these, between 160 and 170 inmates belonged to risk group 1 or 2.3 At the outbreak of Covid-19, the Prison and Probation Service developed a strategy for separating inmates who belong to an at-risk group from other inmates. In the routine the following, inter alia, was stated: 3 Risk group 1 includes inmates over the age of 70 and those with a vulnerable general condition and/or with treatment that suppresses the immune system. Risk group 2 includes inmates over the age of 60 with complicated diseases such as heart/lung disease, diabetes, cancer and/or high blood pressure. – 26 –