Entry rules for holidaymakers are changing. The corona incidence is falling again. Virologist Christian Drosten dampens hopes for a carefree summer. The news ticker.
- RKI updates list of risk areas: From March 3, 60 states will be removed from the list of high-risk areas (update from March 2, 1:42 p.m.).
- Vaccination speed in Germany: 75.5 percent of the population are now fully vaccinated (update from March 2, 11:10 a.m.).
- The RKI initially did not report any Corona * infection numbers on Wednesday morning, the numbers are now available (see update from March 2nd, 9.15 a.m.).
- The virologist Christian Drosten publishes a gloomy summer forecast.
- This news ticker is continuously updated.
Update from March 2, 1:42 p.m .: Entry into Germany will be easier for holidaymakers returning from abroad. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) updates the list of high-risk areas. From Thursday (March 3rd, 0 a.m.) no more states will be designated as high-risk areas for the time being. The background to this is the changes to the entry regulation that will apply from Thursday.
The 3G rule still applies to all travelers entering Germany. Those who are not vaccinated or have recovered must have a negative test. In the future, this obligation to provide proof will apply from the age of twelve instead of six years, as the new entry regulation provides.
RKI: From Thursday there will be no more high-risk and virus variant areas
The RKI currently does not identify any high-risk or virus variant areas. The RKI reports on its website that new high-risk areas and virus variant areas can be identified at very short notice. In the future, only areas in which variants with “more worrying properties” are rampant than the omicron variant that dominates in this country should be classified as high-risk areas. Countries in which variants with particularly threatening properties occur could also be classified as “virus variant areas” again.
In general, the following applies to people entering the country: Anyone who comes from high-risk areas and has not been fully vaccinated or recovered must be in quarantine for ten days and can get out of it five days after entry at the earliest with a negative test. The new regulation will make things easier for families with children in the future: children under the age of twelve should be able to test themselves freely when they return from quarantine, for children under six it should be omitted for these areas. According to the Federal Ministry of Health, there is no relief for children under the age of six when returning from a virus variant area.
Update from March 2, 1:21 p.m .: The Novavax vaccine is there, the demand for the newly approved corona vaccine * is low. Unvaccinated people can hardly be convinced of the new offer.
Drosten and Ciesek get off the NDR podcast “Coronavirus Update”.
Update from March 2, 1:13 p.m .: Virologist Christian Drosten and the Bonn virologist Sandra Ciesek get out of the NDR podcast “Coronavirus Update”* in March. Drosten announced this in the latest episode.
Vaccination rate in Germany continues to decrease
Update from March 2, 11:10 a.m .: While the number of corona infections has been at a very high level in recent weeks, the pace of vaccination has continued to decrease. 104,000 doses of vaccine were administered on Tuesday, according to data from the Robert Koch Institute on Wednesday. On Tuesday a week ago there were still around 150,000 cans.
In the meantime, 75.5 percent of the population (at least 62.8 million people) have received basic protection, which usually requires two injections. 57.1 percent (47.5 million) also received a booster vaccination. 76.3 percent (63.5 million) have been vaccinated at least once. A large group of 23.7 percent of the population (19.7 million people) remains unvaccinated, according to the Department of Health’s immunization dashboard. However, no vaccine has been approved for 4.8 percent (four million) because they are four years old or younger.
Corona in Germany: RKI reports current infection numbers
Update from March 2, 9.15 a.m .: The Robert Koch Institute did not report the current corona numbers as usual early on Wednesday morning. The current figures are now available. The nationwide seven-day incidence has therefore fallen again. The RKI gave the value of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants and week on Wednesday morning as 1171.9. For comparison: the day before the value was 1213.0. A week ago, the nationwide incidence was 1278.9 (previous month: 1227.5). The health authorities in Germany reported 186,406 new corona infections to the RKI within one day. A week ago there were 209,052 infections.
According to the new information, 301 deaths were recorded across Germany within 24 hours. A week ago there were 299 deaths. The number of corona-infected patients who came to clinics per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days was 5.93 (Monday: 6.08) according to the RKI on Tuesday. Among them are many people with a positive corona test who have another main illness. The value is not reported on weekends.
Corona: Virologist Drosten with a bitter summer forecast – delay in numbers at the RKI
Original message: Berlin – It was a long, hard Corona * winter that lies behind Germany. For weeks, the Robert Koch Institute reported more than 200,000 new infections every day. The infection process has been slowly ebbing away for days. However, virologist Christian Drosten does not assume a corona summer without worries. Meanwhile, the current infection numbers of the RKI are delayed.
In the past two years, the warm summer has already resulted in low infection rates and a significant easing of the pandemic. If virologist Christian Drosten has his way, the summer will not be entirely without worries. On the one hand, the current vaccination progress is not sufficient, on the other hand, the infection activity through the omicron variant is still high, said the scientist from the Berlin Charité on Tuesday in the podcast “Coronavirus Update” on NDR-Info . “Therefore, I assume that there will not be an infection-free summer.”
Drosten: FFP2 masks indoors are “the most efficient measure of all” in the long term
Drosten pointed out that in South Africa, for example, the omicron wave had risen steeply in midsummer. He doesn’t assume that an “untamed” wave will be seen in Germany in the summer, but “you will be able to get infected with this omicron virus in the summer too”. Accordingly, he also thinks it is advisable to continue wearing masks indoors in summer. In particular, wearing FFP2 masks indoors is “the most efficient measure of all” in the long term.
With a view to the winter, Drosten is very certain that there will be another wave. He hopes that this will not be accompanied by a serious burden of illness in the population, but the risk of large-scale work absences will continue to exist. “The pandemic is not only over when the vaccination has reduced the severity of the disease, but also when this high level of transmissibility has ended as a result of certain modifications in the population,” he warned.
Corona in Germany: will the omicron subtype BA.2 cause the next heavy wave?
Drosten explained that the omicron subtype BA.2, which is probably even easier to transmit and is spreading more and more, remains an uncertainty factor for the development. Drosten said that previous study data from several countries cannot be used to determine whether BA.2 leads to more severe disease progressions. The data are still very preliminary. However, he hopes for insights from Hong Kong, where many older people have been very hesitant about the vaccination and where Omicron is now showing a heavy burden of disease in this group.
It is still unclear how the infection will develop on Wednesday, March 2, 2022. Unlike on normal days, the Robert Koch Institute had not yet reported any current infection numbers by 7 a.m. in the early morning. *Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
