At the end of the week, the security phase at schools in Vienna, Lower Austria and Burgenland will come to an end. However, the Corona rules will not change too much: Although the compulsory test is no longer required for vaccinated students, everyone else will have to test three times a week, one of them using a PCR test.
In all three federal states, the risk-adjusted seven-day incidence is between 100 and 200, which means “medium risk” and thus, among other things, increased testing. The schools in the other federal states will still be in the safety phase next week; according to the current state of affairs, the obligation to test would remain upright almost everywhere. Only in Tyrol, where the risk-adjusted seven-day incidence is around 88, could the school tests be omitted because, according to the step-by-step plan of the Ministry of Education, they are only provided for an incidence of 100 or more.
On the other hand, SP leader Pamela Rendi-Wagner turned yesterday. She called for the PCR tests in schools to be continued throughout the winter semester, regardless of the incidence figures. The tests are important to protect the children and their families. “This safety net in Austria’s schools must not be torn apart,” said Rendi-Wagner.
In fact, the vaccination rate among schoolchildren over the age of twelve for whom the Covid vaccines have already been approved is lower than in the general population. A little more than a third (36.1 percent) of twelve to 18-year-olds were fully immunized as of yesterday, according to the Ministry of Health, and 43.1 percent had at least one sting. The younger they are, the lower the vaccination rate: a third of twelve to 15-year-olds are vaccinated at least once, and 26.1 percent are fully vaccinated. For 16 to 20 year olds, the partial immunization rate is 58.8 percent (52.3 percent fully immunized).
The SPÖ wants to introduce its request to keep the tests for schoolchildren today as an application in the National Council. The Neos, on the other hand, are calling for an early end to compulsory school tests: If an immunity rate of 75 percent has been reached in the general population (vaccinated or recovered), the protective measures in schools should be completely discontinued, says Neos boss Beate Meinl-Reisinger.
Refresh other vaccinations
On another vaccination front yesterday, the medical association launched an appeal: Due to the pandemic, vaccinations against childhood diseases have fallen sharply, parents should now pay attention to the refreshment. “Diseases such as diphtheria, tetanus, polio and HPV have been pushed back in the past few decades, but this success should not be gambled away,” said Thomas Szekeres, head of the medical association. (yeah)
