Many German citizens are gradually coming back from their holidays all over the world - that's why corona tests should become mandatory across the board.
But how quickly does the additional protection come about?
Berlin - The federal government is under time pressure with the planned general corona test obligation for holiday returnees.
The deputy spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer left a start date open on Wednesday, pointing out that internal discussions were still ongoing.
Green Chancellor candidate Annalena Baerbock warned that one should not repeat the mistakes of the past summer, only to think about better protection when the vacationers are back. In the first countries, the end of the summer vacation is approaching, at the same time the currently low number of infections continues to rise in Germany.
Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) and Interior Minister Horst Seehofer (CSU) plan that a negative test should be necessary when entering the country if you have no proof of a complete vaccination or recovery. Such a general test obligation already exists for flight passengers. In the future, it should work, regardless of where and what means of transport you come from - including, for example, by car. Details are still being discussed. However, it is not intended that every person entering the country will be checked directly at the border, as was the case at some border sections in spring 2020. Instead, one relies on random checks in the border area.
Bavaria's Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) had named next Sunday as a possible date. He said on Tuesday evening in the ARD that the federal government had promised that it would try everything by August 1 to introduce a uniform test requirement. An originally planned date from September 11th would have been “a joke”, said Söder, “the vacation is over, even in the countries with late holidays”.
The federal government left the start date open for the time being. Regulations for return travelers are also on the list of topics of the Corona round by Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) with the Prime Minister of the federal states on August 10, said Vice-Spokeswoman Demmer. What can be clarified beforehand will of course be clarified. It applies: “The faster, the better.” A spokeswoman for Spahns said that if it were up to the health department, the obligation to test would long apply. "If it is the beginning of August now, then we can only welcome that."
The SPD urges legally secure solutions. Such test obligations make sense, but must stand in court, said the legal policy spokesman for the SPD parliamentary group, Johannes Fechner, of the German press agency. "The Bundestag should quickly, if necessary in a special session in August, create the conditions for new test obligations." AfD parliamentary group leader Alice Weidel turned against a general test obligation. This would put a disproportionate burden on travelers, border authorities and the tourism industry. She spoke of uncertainty among vacationers who had to stop.
A minor change to quarantine requirements has been in effect since Wednesday.
Anyone who comes from an area with new, more contagious virus variants can end the mandatory 14-day quarantine prematurely with a negative test if the region is downgraded during the quarantine period - to a risk area or high incidence area with high numbers of infections.
In principle, premature “free testing” is otherwise not possible for those arriving from virus variant areas.
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) publishes on the Internet which regions the federal government declares as high-risk, high-incidence or virus variant areas with requirements for tests and quarantine.
Currently, South Africa and Brazil are virus variant areas, among others.
With a view to autumn, additional measures against increasing numbers of infections are also being discussed - this should also be the topic of the federal-state round with Merkel. The RKI also sees a need for action. "The fourth wave has begun," says a paper that RKI boss Lothar Wieler presented at a switching conference with the heads of the state chancelleries on Monday. High vaccination rates alone were not enough to keep the wave flat. Additional "basic protection measures" such as distance and masks are necessary. The paper also lists the aspects “reduction in contacts, reduction in mobility” in bullet points.
In order to discuss additional criteria for assessing the situation, the RKI paper states that the seven-day incidence remains important in order to assess the situation in Germany and initiate control measures at an early stage.
The presentation was available to the dpa, first the "Bild" newspaper and "The Pioneer" reported about it.
SPD legal expert Fechner said with a view to this debate that the Bundestag would probably have to meet in August anyway to decide on the fund for flood aid.
"The urgently needed amendment to the Infection Protection Act could then be resolved, which will bind the introduction of corona requirements to further criteria in addition to the incidence value in the future."
Nationwide, the number of new infections reported per 100,000 inhabitants rose further to 15.0 in seven days, according to the RKI - the previous day this seven-day incidence was 14.5. dpa
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