“We have to be extremely careful now that we do not get into a situation like in the Netherlands, where the number of infections has increased sevenfold within a week,” said epidemiologist Gerald Gartlehner in “ZiB2”.
Video: Epidemiologist Gerald Gartlehner from Danube University Krems on the current epidemiological situation in Austria.
In the medium term, the strategy of releasing the population into their own responsibility is correct, but it is still too early for that, according to Gartlehner. The epidemiologist also spoke out in favor of making the 3-G rules in night gastronomy stricter and can also imagine making corona tests subject to costs in order to get people to vaccinate. Gartlehner considers compulsory vaccination in the health sector as in France worth considering. As far as the infection of fully immunized people is concerned, he reassures them that they would not have a severe course.
The complexity researcher Stefan Thurner also warns in the “Kurier” (Tuesday edition) against too much looseness. “We need a safety buffer. Should the vaccination rate stagnate at around 60 percent, the risk of major outbreaks will remain.” For simulation researcher Nikolas Popper, the current increase in numbers is not surprising, it is the logical consequence of the opening steps. In order to slow down the dynamics, two things would have to be done: “Vaccinate as many people as possible and carry out test screenings,” said Popper in the “Kurier”.
“For anyone who is vaccinated, the pandemic is over”
Kurz today urged all citizens to get vaccinated against the corona virus. The number of infections will soon rise again in Austria, he said on Sunday evening (local time) in New York. “The virus will not go away, it will stay. It will keep us busy for years,” said Kurz. He also announced that he had received his second dose of Astrazeneca a few days ago.
“For everyone who is vaccinated, the pandemic is over. For everyone who is not vaccinated, the virus is a massive problem,” warned the Chancellor in an interview with Austrian journalists. An increase in the number of infections, like recently in southern Europe or the Netherlands, “will also take place here,” he said. After one and a half years of experience with the coronavirus, you know: “This pandemic comes in waves.”
In comparison to the earlier waves, there is now the vaccination as a “game changer”, said Kurz. This also protects against all previous variants, including the Delta variant. He himself asked “every day” whether there was a mutation that was not covered by the vaccination, he said.
Kurz recently emphasized personal responsibility in dealing with the pandemic. Now he made it clear that the federal government has an interest in as many vaccinated people as possible in Austria. They are trying to “create a very low-threshold offer” with the federal states, for example to reach people who want to be vaccinated without registering. Cooperation with associations such as the volunteer fire brigade are also planned.
Kurz does not seem to think of financial incentives for vaccinations. “So far we have been betting on vaccinating those who want it,” replied the Chancellor to a corresponding question from the APA. If the number of infections rises again, he assumes that the vaccination offer will also be accepted by those people who had previously hoped that the virus would “disappear”.
Kurz also emphasized that the turquoise-green government had “a clear commitment to face-to-face teaching” in autumn. Education Minister Heinz Faßmann (ÖVP) has already “worked out a good concept that will be presented in detail in August”. The Chancellor indicated that this concept could be based on testing.
Kurz also countered criticism that the opening steps were going too far. “We have a stronger safety net than other countries,” he said, referring to the high test intensity and the 3G rule. In addition, everyone has the opportunity to go beyond the applicable regulations and protect themselves. “I am double vaccinated and still get tested,” said the Chancellor. According to the Federal Chancellery, the 34-year-old received the second dose of the Astrazeneca vaccine a few days ago. He got the first injection at the beginning of June.
Kurz also expressed his skepticism when asked about possible new border closings. “The virus doesn’t stop at borders,” he said. “Certain border measures” made sense, “but nobody could stop the virus,” he said, referring to the fact that the Delta variant, for example, had spread across Europe despite entry restrictions. At the same time, Kurz called for a “clear view of the essentials” in the pandemic. “We always wanted to prevent the hospitals from being overwhelmed, and that must continue to be the goal,” he said.
“Callousness” of the Chancellor
SPÖ health spokesman Philip Kucher sees the Chancellor as being “cold-tempered”. Apparently, Kurz wants to say goodbye to any responsibility in connection with the pandemic management: “If he now declares the pandemic a private matter, he leaves everyone who cannot be vaccinated – children under 12 and people who do not vaccinate for health reasons allowed – the pandemic. “
Environmental medicine specialist Hans-Peter Hutter pleaded in the Ö1 “Mittagsjournal” when asked about the latest statements from Kurz for “simple, smaller measures” to continue over the summer. That is better “than actually having greater restrictions on movement into autumn”. One should not forget, “Many have not yet been vaccinated and some will not be vaccinated either, or some cannot be vaccinated at all, so that one only relies on vaccination, which in my opinion is really too little,” said the researcher from the Center for Public Health at MedUni Vienna.
Hutter emphasized the importance of ordinances and referred to the 3G rules and, in addition to schools and hospitals, to “many indoor situations that still require mindfulness”. It is “certainly about time that easing of course was carried out”. On the other hand, “everything happened too quickly” and “still needs certain framework conditions that are specified by our government,” he warned.
