Liveblog
Status: 03/13/2022 8:55 p.m
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As of Monday, masks will no longer be compulsory in large areas of public life in France. Minister of Health Lauterbach calls on unvaccinated people to be vaccinated again. The developments in the live blog.
8:55 p.m
Ex-President Obama tested positive
Former US President Barack Obama has tested positive for Corona. Apart from a scratchy throat, he feels fine. “I’ve had a sore throat for a few days but otherwise I’m fine,” Obama wrote on Twitter. “Michelle and I are grateful to be vaccinated.” Michelle Obama tested negative.
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8:12 p.m
Masks are largely not compulsory in France
France largely relaxed its corona restrictions on Monday. Masks are no longer compulsory in many areas of public life. In addition, vaccination certificates no longer have to be presented in many places. In France, the corona numbers have fallen just as rapidly in the past few weeks as they had previously risen.
For about a week, however, they have been rising again slightly. The incidence in France is currently around 570 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within a week. There are fewer than 2000 Covid patients in intensive care units.
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4:10 p.m
UN lift mask requirement at headquarters
In view of the low number of infections, the United Nations is dropping most corona restrictions at its New York headquarters. From this Monday, among other things, the mask requirement for the UN premises on the East River in New York will be lifted, UN Secretary-General António Guterres wrote in an internal letter. Members of non-governmental organizations are also allowed to enter the building again after two years of restrictions. From the end of March, all meetings would be allowed again to the usual extent. Decisions about opening the UN to tourists, among other things, would be made in April.
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1:03 p.m
Lauterbach appeals to the unvaccinated
In view of the particularly widespread spread of corona in Germany compared to other European countries, Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach has once again urged unvaccinated people to be vaccinated. Germany now has the highest corona incidence in Europe, according to Lauterbach, referring to data from the World Health Organization (WHO) on Twitter. “Tendency is increasing, many deaths,” Lauterbach continued. Those who have been vaccinated are now often careless because they know that they could become infected, but usually do not become seriously ill. But the unvaccinated are now defenseless against the virus.
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10:08 a.m
FDP health expert: Hopefully vaccination will not be necessary
The FDP health politician Andrew Ullmann hopes that the planned general vaccination will not be necessary in the first place. “Ideally, we no longer need vaccinations in the fall,” said Ullmann of “Bild am Sonntag”. The health policy spokesman for the FDP parliamentary group is himself the initiator of the application for vaccination proof from the age of 50. On Thursday, the Bundestag wants to debate the various applications for the first time. According to Ullmann, the application he supports “could be a bridge”. This provides for an obligation to advise until September 15th. If the vaccination rate is too low and the health care system is overburdened, a vote will be taken on the obligation to provide proof of vaccination from the age of 50.
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09:19 am
Bremen virologist warns of “Corona is over feeling”
With a view to the far-reaching relaxation of the corona requirements planned for the end of next week, the Bremen virologist Andreas Dotzauer warns against being too careless in dealing with the Covid pathogen. The federal-state decision, which provides for strict measures such as access and contact restrictions from March 20th only for so-called hotspots, was “unrealistic and fell much too early,” said the virologist from the University of Bremen of the “Nordsee-Zeitung”. Dotzauer criticized that the easing could lead to a “corona-is-over-feeling” and that the corona virus would use its better chances of spreading. Germany is already in a second omicron wave. The currently particularly widespread pathogen subtype “BA.2” is more contagious than the omicron original variant – even outdoors. It is all the more important to continue to take the wearing of masks and the rules of distance and hygiene seriously. These are not measures that “really restrict personal freedom”.
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06:05 a.m
China imposes more lockdowns
China registered almost 3,400 new corona cases in one day, the highest number of new infections since February 2020. The authorities reported 3393 new infections. This was twice as many cases as the day before.
The city of Jilin was partially cordoned off on Sunday, an official said. A lockdown was imposed in numerous districts. In the neighboring city of Changchun, the authorities had already ordered a lockdown on Friday. The city of Yanji on the border with North Korea was completely sealed off on Sunday.
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5:47 a.m
More than half a million PCR tests at Paralympics
The Paralympic Winter Games in Beijing remained almost corona-free. According to an official survey available to the dpa news agency, 519,486 tests were taken up to and including Saturday during the games. Of these, six were positive, five of them athletes or officials. The number of tests at the airport upon entry was slightly higher. Of 2331 people tested, 18 were positive, 16 of whom were athletes and officials. The German delegation had no positive test to complain about until Saturday.
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4:41 a.m
Söder criticizes federal plans for corona rules
The Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Söder sees Germany exposed to new virus variants with the revised Infection Protection Act of the federal government. The draft of the traffic light has real gaps and weaknesses, Söder told the “Bild am Sonntag”. “Basically, there are no longer any real protective measures. This means that we are defenseless and defenseless against new mutations in the fall. For example, largely omitting the mask is premature and can quickly lead to a so-called contagion in schools, for example,” said the CSU Politician.
Söder particularly criticized Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD). “The Federal Minister of Health is expecting new waves, and the traffic light will abolish all measures at the same time,” he said, referring to the red-green-yellow federal government. “If the traffic light has its way, Corona will be history next week. But that’s not the reality.”
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4:41 a.m
Nationwide incidence rises to over 1500
The nationwide seven-day incidence of new corona infections has exceeded the 1500 mark. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the value was 1526.8 in the morning. The previous day it was 1496.0, on Saturday last week it was 1231.1. The value quantifies the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants over a period of seven days.
As the RKI further reported, citing data from the health authorities, the number of new infections reported within 24 hours was 146,607. Around 237,000 new infections had been reported the day before, compared to 116,889 a week ago. The total number of registered cases of infection in Germany since the beginning of the corona pandemic has increased to 17,141,351. According to the RKI, 50 further deaths related to the corona virus were registered within 24 hours. The total number of corona deaths recorded in Germany rose to 125,571.
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4:41 a.m
DGB warns against too little protection in the workplace
The German Trade Union Confederation (DGB) warns against neglecting protection against corona infections in the workplace. “Occupational safety must not become a private matter for employees from the end of March,” said DGB board member Anja Piel to the newspapers of the Funke media group. “The pandemic is not over yet, and that’s why home office – where possible – remains a useful tool to limit contacts and thus the risk of infection.” At the same time, employees must continue to be protected at work in the company: by wearing masks indoors and closely monitoring the infection process through regular tests. “Employers would have to bear the costs for this,” said Piel.
Despite the increasing number of infections, looser corona rules should apply in Germany’s companies in a week from the beginning of spring. The draft regulation of the Federal Ministry of Labor provides that employers themselves should assess the risk of the virus and define appropriate measures in a company hygiene concept.
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4:41 a.m
The live blog from Saturday to read
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