On Monday (January 24th) there will be the first Corona summit in the new year, at which Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) will discuss further measures with the Prime Minister.
- On Monday, the prime ministers will meet Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) for the Corona summit.
- Despite the rapidly increasing number of infections, the Corona Expert Council does not recommend any stricter measures.
- Chancellor Olaf Scholz spoke out against easing in advance (see update from January 23, 4:50 p.m.).
- This news ticker is continuously updated.
Update from January 23, 4:50 p.m: Before the Corona summit, neither large-scale easing nor far-reaching tightening are foreseen. Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) also pointed this out. “I am in favor of continuing on the path we have taken,” says Scholz Süddeutsche Zeitung. The chancellor gave a clear rejection of easing: “In any case, it is certainly not appropriate to relax the rules across the board in the middle of the omicron wave.” “No course correction” is needed. According to the Chancellor, the “strict rules” that had been introduced since November meant that the omicron wave reached Germany later than other European countries.
Corona summit: Job-related vaccination requirement on the brink – incidence at maximum
First report from January 23rd: Berlin – On Monday (January 24), the prime ministers want to discuss how to proceed in the corona pandemic with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD). The measures that could be decided are influenced by the current infection process and expert opinions. An overview.
The corona numbers are currently increasing rapidly in Germany. The seven-day incidence of new infections has exceeded 800 for the first time. On Sunday morning (January 23), the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reported an incidence of 806.8. In the last few days, this value has risen sharply: the day before the incidence was 772.7 and a week ago it was 515.7. According to experts, however, the number of infections should be treated with caution, especially in the future. It is expected that more and more infections cannot be detected because test capacities and health authorities are increasingly at the limit.
Corona Expert Council: No further tightening of the measures recommended
The expert council of the federal government *, which is important for the political approach in the corona pandemic, published a statement on the current situation on Saturday evening (January 22) and made recommendations. In view of the high incidence values and case numbers, these were surprising: the committee does not recommend any new tightening of the corona measures. Instead, the existing regulations would have to be retained and consistently enforced.
Further measures would only have to be introduced if the hospitalization rate exceeds critical levels in the coming weeks. However, the committee does not write in the statement which value is critical and which exact measures should then be taken. Measures should be prepared now so that they – if necessary – “can be implemented without delay”.
End of the pandemic: Experts continue to pin hope on vaccination
The Expert Council continues to regard contact restrictions and vaccination as essential measures to overcome the corona pandemic. The intensification of the booster campaign is therefore a high priority. Otherwise, you have to expect “strong waves of infection and illness” again and again. With an increase in basic immunity in the population and a decrease in the number of cases and hospital admissions, contact restrictions could even be gradually withdrawn.
However, there is also a warning: Due to the existing contact reductions and the prudent behavior of the citizens, the internationally observed steep increase in the number of infections in Germany was initially slowed down. However, the Expert Council expects a further increase, at the peak of which seven-day incidences “could be reached by several thousand regionally”.
Minister of Health Lauterbach: Relaxing would “pour oil on the fire”
Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has also spoken out several times in favor of maintaining the existing measures without tightening them up. Opposite of Rheinische Post But he also warned against easing: “But easing would be fatal. We would pour oil on the fire and accelerate the wave.” He also suggested prioritizing the particularly reliable PCR tests and concentrating contact tracing on selected professional groups.
The upcoming vaccination requirement for nursing staff and hospital staff could also become an important topic at the upcoming Corona summit. Occupational vaccinations are to be introduced in mid-March. However, more and more criticism was expressed about this. According to that daily mirror several federal states insist on postponing the corona measure. It should first wait for the introduction of the protein vaccine Novavax. Too many nurses do not want to be vaccinated and would accordingly be eliminated in the health sector, which is already suffering from a severe shortage of staff.
Job-related compulsory vaccination on the brink: Waiting for the protein vaccine Novavax
However, since the new Novavax vaccine is more accepted by many vaccination skeptics than the previous mRNA vaccines, many nursing staff could still be vaccinated with it. The first shipment of 1.75 million doses is expected to be available from February 21. With two vaccinations, however, this could delay the introduction by several weeks. Crisis talks are said to have taken place on Saturday in this context in the presence of Health Minister Lauterbach (SPD). Meanwhile, Markus Söder (CSU) * insists on a postponement of the vaccination requirement because he fears too many staff losses. (at/dpa) *Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
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