The demands for a clear timetable for corona easing are getting louder. The SPD is already looking forward to March 19, when the legal basis for the current measures will expire.
Berlin – The discussion about easing the corona restrictions is picking up speed. The SPD considers it possible that the corona measures could be completely eliminated in March.
“In the next few weeks we will take our time to see whether it is even necessary to extend the corona protection measures beyond March 19,” said the parliamentary director of the SPD parliamentary group, Johannes Fechner, of the “Welt”. If, in mid-February, a decline in the omicron variant is actually detected, the question arises as to whether the restrictions in the spring and summer months are still necessary. Fechner thinks it is more likely that “such protective measures will only be discussed again with a view to next autumn”.
The Infection Protection Act was last amended by the Bundestag and Bundesrat in December. It enables the federal and state governments to take a number of measures to contain the pandemic, including the obligation to wear masks or social distancing. The measures are currently limited to March 19, but could be extended once by up to three months by the Bundestag.
disagreement about further action
The Greens parliamentary group, on the other hand, urges caution. “We will now not be able to do without certain measures such as the obligation to wear masks or a reduction in contacts,” said parliamentary group leader Britta Haßelmann of the “Welt”. The omicron wave has not yet reached its peak. Even if the course of the disease is less severe, in large numbers they lead to a noticeable burden on the clinics. Not enough is known about the distribution of the subtype BA.2, the vaccination gap is too large. “Therefore, there are no prerequisites for easing at the moment.” If the infection situation eases, there will be a reaction. “Then it will be about opening steps and stage models so that sectors such as culture or retail can plan with certainty.”
The head of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV), Andreas Gassen, is already calling for an opening plan for Germany. “What we need now is a freedom plan – a plan for how we will loosen up step by step and based on parameters. Formulating this Freedom Plan is now the most important task of politics,” Gassen told the Düsseldorf Rheinische Post. Germany must learn to live with Corona. “Some people think that the pandemic will only be over when no one dies from corona anymore. This is a mistake: Corona will probably remain part of the disease process in the long term. With influenza we always have new variants, in some years tens of thousands of deaths. We have to accept that with Corona and at the same time continue to offer vaccinations for risk groups,” Gassen continued. Specifically, the KBV boss can imagine opening the stadiums or easing trade. The health policy spokesman for the Union faction, Tino Sorge (CDU), also called on the federal government to “launch a plan for openings in February”.
Intensive care physicians urge caution
Intensive care physicians, on the other hand, warn of a “roller coaster ride” in the number of infections if the restrictions are relaxed too quickly. “Loosening of the corona measures, as some federal states have now announced, is too early,” said the President of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (DIVI), Gernot Marx, to the newspapers of the Funke media group. It is reasonable to discuss easing steps with foresight. Concrete easing should only be decided when the peak of the omicron wave has been passed. “The federal and state governments should wait until the number of infections has fallen steadily over several days. It would be fatal if we got on a rollercoaster ride with the number of infections increasing again due to loosening too early.” dpa
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