BERLIN (Reuters) – German health minister Karl Lauterbach on Sunday ruled out social isolation measures for Christmas, but warned that the fifth wave of Covid-19 could no longer be stopped and defended mandatory vaccination as the only one way to stop the pandemic.
“There won’t be a lockout before Christmas here. But we’re going to have a fifth wave – we’ve crossed a critical number of Ômicron infections,” Lauterbach said, speaking to ARD. “This wave can no longer be stopped completely.”
In another interview with BILD, Lauterbach added that he also does not expect a “hard blockade” in Germany after the holiday period.
Germany banned unvaccinated people from entering non-essential facilities earlier this month in an attempt to control the rise in cases amid the spread of the Ômicron variant.
The government has yet to make clear to the public what will and will not be allowed during the holiday season, Lauterbach said, without specifying what measures were under discussion.
Almost 70% of the population is fully vaccinated against the virus, according to data from December 17th.
The country recorded 29,348 new cases on Sunday and 180 deaths, according to the Robert Koch Institute of Infectious Diseases. The number of new daily cases increased significantly in October and November, but has slowly declined since the beginning of the month.
“I believe we can defeat this if we close the gaps in vaccination with mandatory vaccines. That is my clear conviction,” said Lauterbach.
(By Victoria Waldersee)
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