Corona: Austria makes AstraZeneca decision – EU briefly warns of political tensions

How is Austria navigating through the Corona crisis? The numbers are increasing, as is the friction in the National Council. Another lockdown is feared. All developments in the news ticker.

Update from March 16, 4:20 p.m.: The vaccination summit in the Vienna Federal Chancellery is over. The participating heads of government from Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Latvia, Slovenia and the Czech Republic agreed on one thing: The distribution of corona vaccines in the EU must be readjusted in order to avoid political tensions. A correction mechanism is necessary, said Austria’s Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. “The way it is, it shouldn’t stay that way.” However, no specific suggestions as to what the mechanism should look like were presented.

“I believe that this is also a timely warning,” said Slovenian Prime Minister Janez Jansa, explaining the move. If some countries were not supplied according to population size, as originally agreed, but received more, half of the EU countries would be 60 percent vaccinated by June and the other only 30 percent. “That would certainly lead to a political crisis,” he said.

According to the heads of government, talks with EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council Chairman Charles Michel are planned for Tuesday evening or Wednesday.

Corona: Austria makes AstraZeneca decision – concerns about fourth “lockdown in mid-April” are growing

First report from March 16: Vienna – Dispute about Austria’s corona policy. In the turquoise-green federal government, poison arrows have recently been flying – also from Chancellor Sebastian Kurz. The ÖVP politician publicly denounced the sluggish vaccination campaign and attacked the Green Minister of Health Rudolf Anschober. Clear words also came from the opposition in the direction of Vienna. The country faces groundbreaking weeks.

Corona in Austria: Regional easing – Voralberg opens gastronomy

On Monday (March 15) there were again consultations between the federal and state governments on the program. As previously announced, concrete results were not presented. However, Austria seems to want to stick to its model of regional differentiation. Relaxation is therefore possible where the infection rate allows. In Voralberg, for example, the gastronomy has now been allowed to reopen under hygiene rules.

The strategy also provides for stricter measures to be adopted in places with an acute infection rate than in the rest of the country. The example of Wiener Neustadt will soon show how successful this course is. The city of 50,000 is the first large city to be affected by the restrictions.

Corona in Austria: Hofer warns of “another lockdown in mid-April”

Austria last changed its original corona strategy after several lockdowns * had not shown a satisfactory effect. However, the Alpine republic could soon find itself in lockdown again. It would be the fourth overall. FPÖ boss Norbert Hofer was “anything but optimistic” on Monday and warned of a “further lockdown around mid-April”.

The former transport minister, who flew out of the government like the entire FPÖ after the Ibiza affair, fears an increase in corona cases * in the country: “According to the experts, the number of new infections every day is around 6,000 – and only below that The prerequisite is that the numbers continue to develop linearly. ”Currently, almost 3,000 new cases are reported in Austria every day, on Tuesday there were 2,425. Hofer sees the opening of the schools as a driver of the pandemic and states: “Nevertheless, there is still no thought of equipping the classrooms with air purification devices. This is disappointing.”

Corona in Austria: incidence of 209.8 – “the beginning of a third wave”

The Neos, the smallest parliamentary group in the National Council, meanwhile, called for more tests to curb the infection process. Companies with 50 or more employees could soon be required to test twice a week. The SPÖ also spoke out against possible easing steps. The seven-day incidence and the situation in the intensive care beds are of particular concern to the Social Democrats.

Austria’s current balance sheet is 209.8 cases per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days (as of March 16). For comparison: In Germany, where the number of infections has also risen recently *, the incidence is 83 (as of March 15). In view of this number, Anschober already spoke on Monday of the “beginning of a third wave”. In the Alpine republic, 60 percent of the intensive care beds used are currently in Vienna or Lower Austria. How The standard reported, individual operations had to be relocated to private clinics in the capital.

Corona in Austria: “Brussels Bazaar” – Kurz invites you to the vaccine summit

The situation in Austria is therefore becoming increasingly tense. Chancellor Kurz sees the only decisive way out of the crisis in vaccinations. Therefore, the 34-year-old invites to a vaccine summit with other European leaders on Tuesday afternoon. In the Federal Chancellery, Kurz consults with the Prime Ministers of Bulgaria, Slovenia and the Czech Republic, Bojko Borissow, Janez Janša and Adrej Babiš. The quartet then discussed a change in the EU vaccination strategy with Krišjānis Kariņš and Andrej Plenkovic, Prime Ministers of Latvia and Croatia.

The heads of government are calling for a fairer distribution of the corona vaccine *. The current ordering system would otherwise “create and deepen huge inequalities among member states by the summer”, according to a joint statement. At the weekend, Kurz spoke of a “Brussels vaccine bazaar”.

Corona in Austria: Vaccinations with Astrazeneca will be continued

The EU Commission has basically given the member states free choice as to which vaccine manufacturers they rely on. In Malta, the vaccination rate is comparatively high because the island state opted for Biontech / Pfizer, while in Bulgaria it is lower because the country preferred the cheaper Astrazeneca vaccine.

Speaking of Astrazeneca: Austria wants a common European approach when dealing with the Swedish-British manufacturer. In contrast to other countries such as Germany, France or Portugal, Austria is currently continuing to vaccinate with Astrazeneca. Hofer, however, called for the “immediate stop” of the Astrazeneca vaccinations. After the “more and more frequent complications” Austria had to follow suit. Anschober pointed out that there was still no causal evidence of the connection between the vaccinations and subsequent blood clots. Astrazeneca remains part of the Austrian vaccination strategy. (as) * Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA