Jens Spahn's attempt to let the “epidemic situation of national scope” run out has sparked a broad debate.
It received approval, but also a lot of criticism.
Not least from Bavaria.
Munich - It still exists, the vaccination progress, it's easy to overlook it.
68.9 percent of Germans had received at least one injection against the corona virus by Tuesday, the daily increases are in the per mille range.
Nevertheless, Jens Spahn referred to the vaccination quota when he suggested that the "epidemic situation of national scope" be allowed to expire.
The risk for immunized persons is low, the health system is no longer acutely threatened by overload.
Since March 2020, the Bundestag has confirmed this state of emergency every three months, which is the basis for measures ranging from a mask requirement to contact restrictions.
The fact that these conditions are passed through the administrative channels without involving Parliament has long been a source of criticism.
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Lauterbach sounds the alarm
The next date on which an extension would have to be voted on at the latest is November 25th. If there is no longer a majority, that does not mean that all restrictions will disappear. According to the Infection Protection Act, the federal states are responsible for the specific design. The law could be changed so that the requirements are no longer linked to the epidemic situation.
Central measures are therefore likely to persist beyond November. "No federal state would be so crazy to forego access restrictions for closed rooms or to bury the mask requirement in buses and trains," said SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach the
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. He points to the increasing number of infections as well as the approaching winter and the shifting of life indoors. Lauterbach is not alone with his concerns. Patient advocates and immunologists also react negatively. There is encouragement from the hospital society.
In Bavaria, the resistance to repeal is growing every day.
While Prime Minister Markus Söder spoke at the weekend that an end to the emergency would "indirectly mean Freedom Day", the lifting of all measures, Health Minister Klaus Holetschek sounded different on Monday evening, shortly after Spahn's announcement had made the rounds.
It is important to have "a uniform legal framework in order to continue to take targeted measures".
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The state government makes no secret of the fact that it is skeptical of Spahn's advance. One is "very cautious about the pure general lifting of this epidemic situation," says State Chancellor Florian Herrmann. He particularly complains that a decision at the federal level has far-reaching legal consequences, including low-threshold measures. This applies not only to 2G or 3G rules, but also to mask compulsory in local transport or compulsory testing in schools. "You just have to keep in mind whether you want this consistency."
"The Bavarian state government has been celebrating a state of emergency for a year and a half," contradicts Martin Hagen, the parliamentary group leader of the Landtag FDP. He considers Spahn's announcement to be "overdue" because the extent of the infection no longer justifies extensive restrictions. “New instruments” will be needed, such as administrative regulations and rules for hospitals. But he can do without the old ones.
Like Spahn, Hagen, whose party voted against an extension last time, argues with the vaccination numbers.
One should "end all measures restricting freedom, because everyone now has the opportunity to protect themselves independently".
In the subway he wants to keep wearing a mask "and would recommend it to everyone".
But that is "nothing that the state should prescribe".
Meanwhile, CSU boss Markus Söder is coming under more and more pressure in the Union.
At an appointment in Munich, the Bavarian Prime Minister looks quite tired - and has changed significantly.
