German Minister of Health: ‘We overcame the worst of the pandemic’

It has been a long time since Health Minister Karl Lauterbach addressed the journalists. Perhaps because the summer wave of the pandemic turned out to be milder than expected, perhaps because he himself was diagnosed positive for the coronavirus and was forced to remain out of action for some time. Now Lauterbach returns to announce some good news: “There is a positive development regarding the summer wave of the pandemic. Both the number of new cases and the death rate are falling.” The Robert Koch Epidemiological Institute comes to the same conclusion, to add, however, that neither the risk of contracting the virus nor the risk of unpleasant complications, especially for the elderly over 80, has yet disappeared.

Fatigue and apathy of the population

Karl Lauterbach was accompanied at Friday’s press conference by Leif ¨Erik Zander, Director of Infectious Diseases at the University Clinic “Charité” in Berlin. As he mentioned, the situation in public hospitals is now under control, but the danger has not disappeared. “Fortunately, the system has not been overloaded, but I can tell you that every now and then we are forced to recruit new beds, while the traffic in the intensive care units has also increased,” he points out. Zander hopes, however, that as the summer wave of the pandemic subsides, the situation in hospitals will also improve, which are suffering from a lack of staff, and the existing staff “are tired with the constant vigilance of the last two and a half years”.

Another comment by Zander is of particular interest: “I have the impression that there is now a weariness or indifference in the population and public opinion. I understand this, as there are now many people who have been infected by the coronavirus.” According to a recent poll by the Infratest-dimap institute, a percentage of 53% of Germans (i.e. a slim majority) consider the current health measures to be mandatory, a percentage of 20% consider them rather excessive, but equally remarkable, around 20%, is the percentage of those who consider them insufficient.

Hopes for new vaccines

Lauterbach and Zander jointly say they are now pinning their hopes on the development of new antivirals, focusing primarily on the relatively mild but highly contagious “Omicron Paralysis.” Earlier this week the BionTech company announced that, if all goes well, the first supplies of the new vaccine will be available from October, when the German government’s new vaccination campaign will begin. Currently the Standing Committee on Immunization (Stiko) recommends only the elderly over 70 to proceed with the fourth dose of vaccination. For his part, Lauterbach also invites younger people to talk to their doctor to consider the possibility of a new vaccination.

“Tires” or “Chains”?

The Minister of Health, who expects a new wave of the pandemic in the autumn, is preparing an amendment to the legislation on infections. The relevant bill is expected to be submitted to the Federal Parliament in September. In figurative terms, reminiscent of winter car maintenance, Lauterbach speaks of two successive levels of alert from autumn: “snow tires” first, but “snow chains” will follow if necessary. In other words: “In a first stage the federal states will be able to decide autonomously, from October 1, whether to make the use of a mask indoors mandatory for everyone, except those who have been vaccinated in the last three months.” If the cases increase further, then the second step will follow: “Exemptions from the mandatory mask use indoors are removed, maybe even the mask will become mandatory even outdoors,” says Karl Lauterbach.

The new plans are raising questions and criticism. The president of the Medical Chamber, Klaus Reinhardt, considers them “practically impossible” to implement and mainly questions “who can effectively check” in a closed space whether those exempt from the mandatory use of a mask have been vaccinated in the previous trimester. Certain federal states speak for vague criteria. However, the federal government wants to be prepared for a difficult autumn. That is why it moves very carefully, in contrast to what is happening in other European countries, such as Great Britain, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Poland, but also Greece, where health measures have been relaxed since last year May.

Gens Turau

Edited by: Yiannis Papadimitriou

Source: Deutsche Welle