They agree to restrictions that lead to the social marginalization of the unvaccinated
Acting Federal Chancellor Angela Merkel and the prime ministers of the 16 German federal states agreed on Thursday to introduce mandatory vaccination against the coronavirus for all personnel working in clinics and hospitals, nursing homes and centers for the chronically ill, as well as in transportation and home care for the sick and elderly. “The federal states request the federal government to implement this decision as soon as possible,” says the agreement reached during the virtual meeting of the highest representatives of national and regional executives when Germany records the highest infection figures since the beginning of the pandemic, with more than 65,000 infections in the last 24 hours.
«The situation is very dramatic and the important thing now is to act quickly and consistently, with better controls. Then we can see if we can stop the dynamics or at least control it, “said Merkel in an appearance before the media. The situation in Germany “would be better if the hole for the unvaccinated was not so big,” declared the Chancellor, recognizing that this country has one of the lowest immunization rates in Western Europe with less than 70% of the population fully immunized. . For his part, the acting Finance Minister and probably the next Federal Chancellor, Olaf Scholz, made a new call for the vaccination of the most reticent and stressed that the important thing now “is to show unity” between the federal government and regional executives .
Those attending the meeting also established that the unvaccinated were prohibited from entering gastronomic and leisure venues, shops that do not sell basic necessities and all kinds of cultural and sporting events. Nor will they be able to access hotels, hairdressers and all kinds of services with physical contact. The measure will be effective in those regions where the rate of hospitalization due to the coronavirus epidemic exceeds three people per 100,000 inhabitants in a week. The national average is currently 5.5 hospitalized patients. If the rate exceeds six patients, the vaccinated and healed will be required to additionally take a test to enter the prohibited premises for the non-immunized. Those attending the meeting also agreed that these restrictions be “controlled in a more consistent and intensive way than hitherto” and “decisively punish” those who violate them.
The heads of federal and federal executives also agreed to accelerate once again the vaccination campaign with doses of soda by business and family doctors, as well as the reactivation of vaccination centers, also to immunize those who rejected it until now . The Federal Army has 12,500 medical personnel available to assist in the operation. In addition, a new premium will be paid to all health and care personnel for the elderly and chronically ill, the amount of which remains to be established and the companies especially affected by the pandemic are extended until March 31, 2022 the public aid that initially went to stop subscribing at the end of the year.
A good part of the agreements reached by Merkel and the prime ministers are reflected in the reform of the so-called Infection Protection Law to facilitate the issuance of measures against the coronavirus, which in the morning had been approved by the plenary session of the Bundestag, the parliament federal, by vast majority. The approval of the new catalog of actions brings with it the end of the national alarm situation, which expires on November 24. The legislative initiative came from the three parties negotiating the new governing coalition in Berlin – Social Democrats (SPD), Greens and Liberals (FDP) – and was rejected by Christian Democrats and Bavarian Social Christians (CDU / CSU), who threaten to block it in the Bundesrat, the upper house or the Länder. The new catalog contains measures very similar to those that have been applied so far, but grants more powers to the federal states and excludes restrictions and closures at the national level.
Among the new regulations for epidemic situations is the obligation to go to the workplace with a vaccination certificate or to have healed, but also the option of being subjected to daily tests to detect a possible contagion for those who do not wish to be immunized. Teleworking is expressly cited as an option that companies must prioritize, also obliged to control whether their employees come to work vaccinated under penalty of a fine. Workers who refuse to comply with the regulations can be suspended from employment and land and even fired. In homes for the elderly and chronically ill, daily tests for staff and visitors will be mandatory. The same rules apply to public transport in the event of epidemic outbreaks.
However, with the approval of the new law, it is the federal states that decide on contact restrictions and the total or partial closure of shops and gastronomic venues, as well as on the suspension of events. Schools and nurseries will remain open in general lines and will only close in isolated cases when there are high infections. Religious services and demonstrations may not be prohibited in a general way. New in the catalog is the establishment of penalties for those who falsify or make use of false vaccination certificates. The former may be punished to up to two years in prison and the latter to penalties of up to one year in prison.
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