German Minister for Health: Up to two or three times more real coronavirus cases

Two to three times more cases of coronavirus are actually recorded, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach warned, urging citizens to celebrate the New Year in a very close circle. He expressed his concern about the “Omicron” variant, which continues to spread.

Due to the holidays, schools and many businesses are closed, as well as many clinics, resulting in fewer diagnostic tests than usual, which results in a “significant under-reporting” of the number of cases. “The current figures downplay the risk we are at,” he said. Today, the Robert Koch Institute reported 40,043 cases, up from 45,659 a week ago. The rate of new cases per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days is at 205.5 compared to 215.5 in the previous 24 hours.

Mr Lauterbach said, however, that one should be careful and avoid speculation about the number of cases, but explained that an increase was expected in each case. A clearer picture of the current pandemic situation is expected by the end of the first week of January, probably before the scheduled meeting of the Prime Ministers of the states with Chancellor Olaf Solz scheduled for January 7.

Karl Lauterbach also said that there is already a significant increase in cases of the “Omicron” variant – today the specific cases were 26% more than the previous 24 hours and yesterday 45% more than the day before yesterday – and called on citizens to be extremely careful in the coming period, especially on New Year’s Eve, in order to limit the spread of the new variant. Answering a question about the situation in neighboring France, the Minister of Health recommended that comparisons be avoided, as Germany, as he said, is in a much better position in terms of the current measures, which, however, he stressed, are not enough. in order to prevent the outbreak of “Omicron”.

Mr Lauterbach called on citizens to be vaccinated once again and said that vaccination was the best protection against Omicron because primary vaccination did not help much, he said. To date, at least 70.8% of the population has been vaccinated with a single dose, while 36% have completed their booster vaccination. 26.1% of the total population has not been vaccinated at all.

The Robert Koch Institute said in a statement that the actual number of cases is expected to be normalized by 10 January at the latest, so that the federal and state governments can have credible evidence to decide on further measures to to avoid system overload. According to the Robert Koch Institute, 83.99% of the country’s ICU beds are currently occupied.

However, the states are already tightening protection measures in view of New Year’s Eve, which in Germany is traditionally celebrated with large gatherings in public places. The operation of nightclubs has been suspended throughout the country, while major sports and arts events are held without spectators. Private meetings are allowed for up to 10 people – including the vaccinated and the sick. In most states the celebration of the change of time outdoors has been banned, as has the use of sparklers. In Hamburg, where the biggest outbreak of “Omicron” is observed, there is an additional restriction on the operation of catering businesses until 23:00, with the exception of 31 December, where opening hours are extended until 01:00, but only for seated people. while dancing is prohibited, among other things.

In Schleswig-Holstein, 820 people have already been placed in a precautionary quarantine, who were having fun in a club in the Hensted-Ulzburg area on Christmas Eve, as at least one of the spectators tested positive for “Omicron”. All patrons should remain in a 14-day quarantine, even if they have been vaccinated against Covid-19, as this variant is considered highly contagious. Only vaccinated or infected persons were allowed to enter the area, but the use of a protective mask was not mandatory.

Source: AMPE