Long considered one of the good European students of the management of the epidemic, Germany must face a major second wave of the epidemic.
The mark of one million people infected with Covid-19 since the start of the epidemic was exceeded this Friday with 1,006,394 cases, or 22,806 more cases in the last 24 hours.
The country has recorded a total of 15,586 deaths (+ 426 in 24 hours).
In this context, when several countries such as France relax the restrictive measures a little, Germany has decided to maintain them until the beginning of January.
Bars, restaurants, cultural venues and sports clubs should therefore remain closed for more than a month.
Access to stores will also be restricted, with a limited number of customers depending on their size.
“We still have to make efforts.
The number of daily infections is still at a much too high level, ”Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday evening after more than seven hours of discussions with the leaders of the 16 German regional states.
In addition, the Chancellor urged Germans not to go abroad during the Christmas holidays, in particular for ski holidays.
The federal government and the regions will therefore ask the European Union to ban ski trips until January 10 to prevent the spread of the virus.
Except that a European decision has little chance of succeeding.
Austria or Spain now the ski resorts open.
Ditto for other countries like Switzerland.
Germany prepares for mass vaccination
At the same time, Berlin is preparing the next move.
In front of the old Tegel airport in Berlin, the orange sign of an airline still launches a "Welcome" to travelers, but soon thousands of candidates for the Covid-19 vaccination should flock here.
The former Terminal C of the platform, closed at the beginning of November, finds a new vocation: by mid-December, it will become a vast vaccination center against the coronavirus.
Germany expects to have the vaccine in the first quarter of 2021 and is preparing for a large-scale operation to set up around sixty centers of the same type across the country, supplemented by mobile teams.
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The federal state will ensure the purchase and delivery of the doses, the regional states will provide syringes, needles, dressings and antiseptic lotions.
For the time being, the city's health services are trying to recruit staff.
The needs are enormous: doctors, nursing staff authorized to vaccinate, logistics and support staff.
In Berlin, 200 to 250 people will work in each vaccination center.