Wednesday, 11.09.2024, 12:01
The situation was “catastrophic,” the Vienna Medical Association had warned. However, the Director General for Public Health reassured people that there was no great reason to worry.
Vienna – “After the Vienna Medical Association warned of a ‘catastrophic corona situation’, the Ministry of Health gave the all-clear on Wednesday. The situation is similar to that of the previous year and there is “no great cause for concern,” said Katharina Reich, Director General for Public Health, in the Ö1 midday journal. However, she called for vaccination against whooping cough.
“Both our wastewater monitoring and our dashboard regarding hospital admissions and also our sentinel surveillance – that is, the information from the practices of the general practitioners – show a constant but slow increase in infections. This development is almost the same as last year,” Reich told S1.
No reason to worry in intensive care units
There are also no signs that the situation in the intensive care units could worsen again. According to Reich, the number of admissions due to Covid in recent weeks has been “almost in the single digits”. “There is no reason to be concerned here. We have sufficient capacity,” said the Director General.
In the colder season, however, infections are likely to rise again. “This will be the same as last year. It is now a matter of becoming more alert again when we spend more time indoors, when life takes place less outdoors, and also of thinking again about how I behave when I feel symptoms of infection,” said Reich.
Influenza and RSV are not currently an issue either, as these diseases only occur in the cold season. “It starts in October or November at the earliest. The peaks, i.e. the highest numbers, are recorded in December, January and February. So we still have time,” says Reich.
Whooping cough vaccination appeal
The situation is somewhat different with whooping cough, however. “We have seen increasing numbers of cases of whooping cough for many years, so here is a big call for vaccination: whooping cough must also be regularly boosted,” appealed the Secretary General.
Regarding the criticism from the Vienna Medical Association that the federal government no longer pays for Covid tests in doctors’ offices, which are necessary in order to be able to get the drug Paxlovid prescribed, Reich saw the ball in the negotiating partners’ court. “In a normal situation, as we have now, in a normal infection situation, the social insurance is responsible for financing these things. And in which mode, which is then to be negotiated between the social insurance and the Medical Association, is also up to the social insurance,” said the Secretary General. (WHAT)
