By Jörg Ratzsch and Ronald Bahlburg, dpa
Should the corona restrictions be lifted when all citizens have received a vaccination offer?
Photo: dpa / Friso Gentsch
The corona numbers are rising again, but does that really have to worry or is the initial situation now completely different due to the vaccinations? The parties are discussing this.
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By Jörg Ratzsch and Ronald Bahlburg, dpa
07/10/2021 – 4:22 pm
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Berlin – The development of the corona numbers is showing up again in Germany after a long descent. The so-called seven-day incidence increased on Saturday for the fourth day in a row, but remains at a low level. In other European countries there is already a more pronounced increase. In politics, there is a discussion about how great the significance of the infection figures is in view of the vaccinations.
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) gave the number of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days on Saturday at 5.8. On Friday the incidence was 5.5. A week ago at 4.9. 952 new corona infections were reported within one day. A week ago the value was 671 infections. In addition, 35 deaths were recorded throughout Germany within one day. A week ago there were 16 dead.
Federal Minister of Justice Christine Lambrecht spoke out against quickly lifting all corona restrictions. “Before we can lift all measures, we have to go much further in the direction of herd immunity,” said the SPD politician of the “Augsburger Allgemeine” (Saturday). “The pandemic is not over yet.” Nonetheless, all remaining measures must be continuously checked to see whether they are still proportionate.
42 percent of the population vaccinated
Your cabinet colleague, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (also SPD), recently spoke out in favor of lifting all corona restrictions as soon as all people in Germany have received a vaccination offer. This can be expected in the course of August.
In a joint statement, the deputy chairmen of the SPD parliamentary group, Bärbel Bas and Dirk Wiese, announced on Saturday that the fight against the pandemic was entering a new phase with increasing vaccinations. “After the successful vaccination campaign, the incidence will no longer be a sufficient indicator for assessing the situation or even as a basis for restrictions on fundamental rights.” School operations cannot be made dependent on incidences either. Bas and Wiese demanded a plan from Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) for the period after the summer by the end of August.
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The deputy FDP parliamentary group leader Michael Theurer criticized the government for its corona crisis management. This is underground and shows a leadership and disoriented federal government, he told the “Handelsblatt”. He called on Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) and Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) to make it clear that “people will get their freedom rights back by the end of summer as promised at the latest, as soon as all those willing to vaccinate have a vaccination offer”.
According to the RKI, more than 42 percent of the total population in Germany are now fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. So far, a total of 48.4 million people (58.2 percent) have received at least one vaccination dose, around 35 million are fully vaccinated. Spahn wrote on Twitter: “That’s good – but it’s not enough in the race with the Delta variant. Vaccine to vaccinate everyone is here now. Please use it! “
700,000 vaccinations per day
According to the federal government, an average of around 700,000 people are vaccinated each day. According to a survey by the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung” among the health ministries of the federal states, there are no massive cancellations of vaccination appointments. Nationwide, only a few Germans canceled their appointments at the vaccination centers, the report said. Overall, the picture is relaxed. A few days ago there was a debate about “vaccination truants” who let appointments pass without being canceled beforehand.
The number of corona infections has now risen more significantly in various European countries than in Germany. Spain, with the popular holiday islands of Mallorca and the Canary Islands, will again be a risk area according to the standards of the federal government from this Sunday. However, there are hardly any practical effects for holidaymakers.
According to the EU Commission, the holiday season is not in danger. Economic commissioner Paolo Gentiloni told the newspapers of the Funke media group (Saturday): “We must now guard against too much excitement and avoid overreactions.” Thanks to the vaccinations, higher numbers did not automatically lead to a more dangerous situation. Despite the particularly contagious Delta variant, a “strong holiday season” is possible.
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