On Friday, the RKI and the federal government will report on the corona situation in Germany. The convalescent status should also be a topic. News ticker.
Update from February 18, 6.35 a.m .: This Friday at 8.30 a.m. Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, RKI Vice President Lars Schaade and Michael Meyer-Hermann, Head of the System Immunology Department at the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research, will report on the current corona situation.
The nationwide seven-day incidence fell again on Friday. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) gave the value of new infections per 100,000 inhabitants per week on Friday morning as 1371.7. For comparison: the day before the value was 1385.1. A week ago, the nationwide incidence was 1472.2 (previous month: 553.2). The health authorities in Germany reported 220,048 new corona infections to the RKI within one day. This is evident from numbers that reflect the status of the RKI dashboard at 5 a.m. A week ago there were 240,172 infections.
Corona in Germany: Incidence has fallen again – but the omicron subtype is a cause for concern
At a joint conference on Wednesday, the federal and state governments decided on an easing roadmap for Germany, which was to end with the lifting of all far-reaching social measures on March 20th. Still, there is cause for concern.
The BA.2 variant from Omikron, which can be transferred even more quickly according to initial findings, has increased noticeably in Germany according to the Robert Koch Institute. The proportion of corona cases examined in a sample has recently risen to 14.9 percent, the RKI stated in its weekly report on Thursday evening. This information refers to the week up to February 6th – for the week before, the RKI gives the share as 10.4 percent.
New omicron subtype BA.2: What do Lauterbach and Schaade say about the new findings?
There is not yet enough data to be able to assess the characteristics of the subtype with regard to the severity of the disease more precisely. However, due to the progressive spread and easier transferability of BA.2, “a slower decrease or a renewed increase in the number of cases cannot be ruled out,” it says.
The planned relaxation of the corona measures and an associated increase in contacts could therefore also contribute to such a development. Experts have recently increasingly pointed to BA.2 as a possible uncertainty factor. In countries like Denmark, the subtype has already spread rapidly. This is therefore also possible in Germany and, according to many, could ensure that the omicron wave is extended.
Recovered status: court declares shortening by the RKI to be illegal
First report from February 17: Munich – The corona situation in Germany seems to be on the way to relaxation. Shortly before the federal-state consultations on Wednesday (February 16), Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach had declared the peak of the omicron wave to be over. Shortly thereafter, the Prime Ministers of the federal states and Chancellor Olaf Scholz agreed at the Corona summit on a relaxation schedule until March 20th.
The positive trend is also reflected in the latest figures. The nationwide seven-day incidence* fell for the seventh day in a row – albeit only slightly at first. Even if the RKI always warns that the value is only conditionally meaningful due to “under-recording”, a trend can be guessed at.
Experts want to give a detailed report on the current corona situation in Germany at the federal press conference on Friday. In addition to Health Minister Karl Lauterbach*, Michael Meyer-Hermann will speak. He is head of the Systems Immunology department at the Helmholtz Center for Infection Research in Braunschweig. However, there will not be a familiar face. RKI boss Lothar Wieler is missing and will be represented by his deputy Lars Schaade.
PK on the corona situation in Germany: convalescent status should become an issue
In addition to the current corona numbers, the recovered status should also be an issue. A regulation that came into force in mid-January gave the Robert Koch Institute the power to decide who is considered recovered from the corona pandemic, under what circumstances and for how long. The RKI promptly decreed that the duration of the recovered status was reduced from 180 to 90 days.
Lawsuits from citizens followed, which were now successful. In addition to other courts, the Berlin administrative court decided in summary proceedings that it was not the RKI, but the federal government* itself that had to decide on the validity of the convalescent status. In the meantime, the Robert Koch Institute had specified that the shortening of the recovered status only affected unvaccinated people. At the most recent Corona summit, it was also decided that the RKI would no longer be allowed to make decisions independently in the future. (AFP/dpa/mt) *Merkur.de is an offer from IPPEN.MEDIA
Rubriklistenbild: © IMAGO / Emmanuele Contini
