There is great concern about a fourth corona wave. Vaccination is urgently recommended in the Chancellery – those who do not participate could soon feel it in everyday life. But this is quickly contradicted.
In view of the rapidly increasing corona numbers, a new discussion has flared up about restrictions for people without a vaccination. If the new infections continue to increase, they would have to reduce their contacts again, said Chancellery Minister Helge Braun (CDU) of “Bild am Sonntag”. “That can also mean that certain offers such as restaurant, cinema and stadium visits would no longer be possible even for those who have not been vaccinated because the residual risk is too high,” he warned. CDU boss Armin Laschet stopped immediately: The proposal had to be discussed again.
Braun expressed his concern about the increasing infections: “The number of new infections is increasing even faster than in the previous waves,” he said and urged citizens to vaccinate. There are two arguments for this: The vaccination protects 90 percent against severe corona disease. “And: Vaccinated people will definitely have more freedom than unvaccinated people,” said Braun.
Lauterbach: Discussion has to take place now
For his push for restrictions for non-vaccinated people, Chancellery Minister Helge Braun (CDU) receives backing from SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach (SPD): “Unfortunately, we have to reckon with significantly increasing numbers of cases when people come back from vacation and strengthen again in autumn encounter indoors, “said Lauterbach of the” Süddeutsche Zeitung “on Monday. Then you will “no longer be able to make ends meet by equating the tested with the vaccinated and recovered”.
The number of false negative tests is too high for such a procedure, said Lauterbach. There will be “nothing left than to restrict access to rooms where many people come together to those who have recovered and who have been vaccinated”. Lauterbach also warned against postponing the discussion about it. “It has to be conducted now, this is not a debate for the hot phase of the federal election campaign,” he told the “SZ”.
Green leader Robert Habeck was also open to giving vaccinated people more freedom than non-vaccinated people. “At the moment when everyone has been offered a vaccination, solidarity looks like this: You don’t have to get vaccinated, but you can’t expect everyone else to forego their freedom because you haven’t been vaccinated,” said he the newspapers of the Funke media group.
Laschet against compulsory vaccination
The consequence is that those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered “may in future have more opportunities and access than people who have decided against vaccination”. Habeck called for exceptions for everyone who cannot be vaccinated for health reasons. In principle, however, the vaccination campaign must be accelerated. For example, language and information barriers would have to be dismantled.
In contrast, Union Chancellor candidate Laschet emphasized in the ZDF summer interview: “I do not believe in compulsory vaccinations and also do not believe in indirectly putting pressure on people to be vaccinated.” The principle that you either have to be vaccinated, tested or recovered in order to do certain things is correct. “In a free state there are freedom rights, not just for certain groups,” Laschet emphasized.
The priority must be to convince as many citizens as possible of the vaccination. “If we then see in autumn that the vaccination rate is still far too low, I think, we have to think further. But not now,” said the CDU leader. SPD parliamentary group leader Rolf Mützenich also criticized Braun. “On the other hand, we will not change the vaccination behavior of individuals with threats,” he told the editorial network in Germany.
Incidence of up to 850 possible
Baden-Württemberg’s Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens), on the other hand, now considers compulsory vaccination to be conceivable – but not in the near future. “I cannot rule out compulsory vaccination for all time,” he told the German press agency. “It is possible that there will be variants that require this.”
The seven-day incidence in Germany has been rising continuously for two and a half weeks. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) from Sunday morning, it was last at 13.8. Accordingly, the health authorities reported 1387 new corona infections to the RKI within one day – a week ago the value was 1292 infections.
The number of infections is currently increasing by 60 percent every week, Braun said. Unless the vaccination rate improves enormously or the behavior of citizens changes, there could be 100,000 new infections every day and an incidence of 850 at the end of September. Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) had also warned of an incidence of 800 in October. Experience has shown that many citizens are becoming more cautious when the number of infections increases.
Discussion about new standards
The incidence has so far been the basis for many restrictions in the pandemic. However, it is currently being discussed whether the limit values need to be changed in view of the increasing vaccination rate – that is, more infections can be accepted if people are less seriously ill on average.
The Rhineland-Palatinate Prime Minister Malu Dreyer (SPD) advocated new criteria. The incidence says today “much less about the risk of illness and the possible burden on the health system than six months ago,” she told the “Rheinische Post” (Saturday). It should be linked to the situation in the hospitals – with who will be admitted and who will have to go to an intensive care unit. Kretschmann pointed out that high numbers of infections are always risky. “The faster the virus circulates, the more often it will mutate,” he said.
With a view to the Prime Minister’s Conference, which may be brought forward, Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) wants to speak to the Union-led countries quickly about his plans for a school vaccination program. “That’s why I invited the prime ministers of the B-countries to a switch this Tuesday as a precaution,” he told the “Augsburger Allgemeine” (Monday). “In addition, we urgently need a binding formula consisting of the incidence value, vaccination rate and occupied hospital beds, in order to know from when measures must be taken – and which rights result for those who have been vaccinated”, said Söder. Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) announced on Thursday that the next prime ministerial conference on the corona pandemic, which was actually planned for the end of August, would be brought forward.
Kubicki warns of “compulsory vaccination through the back door”
Chancellery chief Braun does not think a new lockdown is necessary as long as the vaccines against the Delta variant help. However, a high fourth wave would have an impact on companies due to massive quarantine. “And for those who have not been vaccinated, there will be compulsory tests and if there are high numbers of infections there will have to be further tightening.” He thinks this is legally permissible because the state has to keep the health system functioning.
Bundestag Vice President Wolfgang Kubicki (FDP) told the newspapers of the Funke media group against it that this would be “the introduction of mandatory vaccinations through the back door” and clearly unconstitutional. AfD parliamentary group leader Alice Weidel accused Braun of dividing society into first and second class citizens. According to the RKI, around every second person in Germany is currently fully vaccinated.
The virus could still come back just as dangerously as last autumn, warned Kretschmann. “If variants occur against which the vaccine is no longer as effective – we are immediately in a different situation.” Vaccination is therefore a civic duty for him. “Every responsible person should just do that.”
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