After the publication of unredacted documents, there is a renewed debate about the government’s corona measures. One example from 2021 also concerns assessments of vaccinations.
Former Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn has countered criticism of the phrase “pandemic of the unvaccinated” he used in the Corona crisis. “What I meant by that was that at the time, we saw mainly people without vaccinations in the intensive care units who had severe and very severe courses of illness,” the CDU politician told ZDF. That was a situation “that threatened to overwhelm the health system.”
The background to this is the publication of unredacted documents about the meetings of the Corona crisis team at the Robert Koch Institute (RKI). A group led by a journalist who is one of the critics of the federal government’s Corona policy had posted the documents online and presented them at a press conference on Tuesday. The RKI stated that it had “neither checked nor verified” the data sets.
Discussion in the RKI crisis team
In a document entitled “Results Protocol” dated November 5, 2021, a representative of an RKI department states: “The media is talking about a pandemic of the unvaccinated. From a technical point of view, this is not correct; the population as a whole is contributing. Should this be taken up in communication?” There is no all-clear from the Federal Center for Health Education. Rules on distance, hygiene and ventilation are being given more focus again. “It serves as an appeal to everyone who is not vaccinated to get vaccinated.” Then a representative of another department says: “Minister says this at every press conference, probably deliberately, and it is unlikely to be corrected.”
A spokesman for Spahn told the “Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung” that the minister at the time had referred to the fact that 90 to 95 percent of Covid-19 patients in intensive care units had not been vaccinated. “The expert assessment from the RKI that the population as a whole also contributes does not contradict this.” For example, Spahn wrote on Twitter on September 7, 2021: “In terms of incidence and in intensive care units, we see that we are experiencing a growing pandemic of the unvaccinated. Everyone who can should get their protection!”
“That was the crucial message: If as many people as possible get vaccinated, things will return to normality more quickly,” Spahn explained on Thursday evening on ZDF. “That may also have meant moral pressure for some who had not yet been vaccinated, but of course that was also due to the pandemic at the time.”
Lauterbach: Mostly unvaccinated people in intensive care units
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) told “Spiegel” with reference to his predecessor: “Spahn probably meant that vaccinated people could also become infected, that was known and was not denied by him. However, it was predominantly unvaccinated people who had to go to the intensive care unit with severe courses of illness.” Many of the measures taken were necessary to protect the unvaccinated and the health care system in particular.
Green Party health expert Janosch Dahmen expressed concern that the unredacted publication would violate the personal rights of RKI employees in particular. In addition, it was at least accepted that their safety would be significantly compromised. “Everything must now be done to ensure that these people, who have done extraordinary work at the RKI to deal with this unprecedented health crisis for this country, receive the necessary protection that has now become necessary.”
According to Lauterbach, the RKI plans to publish its protocols itself at a date that has not yet been specified. The documents show what the crisis team discussed at its meetings: current infection figures, the international situation, vaccinations, tests, studies or containment measures.
In May, the RKI had already published the protocols for the period from January 2020 to April 2021 largely without any redactions. This was triggered by a previous publication of heavily redacted protocols by the online magazine “Multipolar”. The fact that numerous passages were redacted at the time sparked a debate about the independence of the RKI.
Source: Stern
I have been working in the news industry for over 6 years, first as a reporter and now as an editor. I have covered politics extensively, and my work has appeared in major newspapers and online news outlets around the world. In addition to my writing, I also contribute regularly to 24 Hours World.
