Germany logged a record incidence rate of over 200 on Monday, according to the latest data released by the Robert Koch Institute of infectious diseases (RKI).
The seven-day incidence rate, which indicates the number of new COVID-19 infections per 100,000 people, is now the highest it’s been since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
The previous record rate of 197.6 was set on December 22, 2020 — a time before vaccines were widely available.
What is the current pandemic situation?
The number of new cases in Germany rose by over 15,500 within the past 24 hours, according to German health officials — bringing the incidence rate to 201.1 on Monday.
Despite the wide availability of vaccines, cases are rising across the country. On Sunday, the rate was 191.5 while a week ago, the rate was 154.8.
The worst hit regions are Saxony and Thuringia, followed by Bavaria.
Christian Karagiannidis, scientific head of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (Divi) told the Augsberger Allgemeine that the number of COVID-19 patients in intensive care could double.
“With an incidence of 300, we expect nationwide about 4,500 COVID patients nationwide, with wide regional variations,” warned Karagiannidis.
Why are teachers worried?
The German teacher’s association is particularly concerned about the rise of cases at schools.
“There are frightening incidences in the group of children and young people,” teachers’ association president Hans-Peter Meidinger told the newspapers of the RND network.
“The danger is immense that we will lose control of the pandemic in schools,” he added.
He called for masks to be reintroduced for students and teachers to be tested daily if case numbers were very high.
Rising case numbers in the eastern state of Saxony are pushing authorities to introduce a 2G rule to many areas of public life. The restriction means only vaccinated and recovered persons can access enclosed spaces.
In the southern state of Bavaria, stricter restrictions went into force on Sunday. Only vaccinated, recovered or PCR-tested citizens can go to bars and events in closed rooms.
What does the government want to do?
The three parties working on a new government coalition, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD), the environmentalist Greens and the neoliberal Free Democrats (FDP), are already planning on restarting free tests.
“The abolition of the free citizen tests was a mistake,” said FDP parliamentary party leader Marco Buschmann.
Politicians had hoped the move to make Germans pay for tests would push more people to get vaccinated. But the numbers of the inoculated have not increased significantly.
The proposed new government, which is still in talks for a definitive working partnership, is also looking at requiring all nursing home workers and visitors to be tested daily, even if they are vaccinated.
Janosch Dahmen, health policy spokesman for the Greens, said he would like to see test results with QR codes “to be controlled exclusively digitally.”
jc/rs (dpa, AFP, Reuters)
Article source: https://www.dw.com/en/germany-covid-incidence-rate-jumps-to-over-200-for-first-time/a-59750534?maca=en-rss-en-all-1573-rdf