World Medical Chief Montgomery denounces the current Corona situation: "More than embarrassing"

Created: 12/30/2021, 12:37 PM

From: Andreas Schmid

"We still have a huge digitization problem in Germany": Frank Ulrich Montgomery criticizes the current Corona situation in the Federal Republic.

© Guido Kirchner / dpa

How accurate are the current corona numbers?

Experts warn that fewer cases would become known over the holidays.

World Medical Chief Montgomery finds the current situation embarrassing.

Berlin - The Robert Koch Institute published a slightly higher nationwide seven-day incidence on Thursday than the day before.

207.4 instead of 205.5.

The health authorities in Germany reported 42,770 new corona infections to the RKI within one day.

Exactly one week ago there were 44,927 infections.

So a decrease in the number of infections?

How valid are the current figures?

World Medical Chief Montgomery: Inaccurate Corona data "more than embarrassing"

The RKI itself gave this data explicitly with the restriction that an incomplete picture could be given due to the low test and reporting activity during the holidays. Because in Germany, the corona situation is largely recorded by the respective health authorities. You forward the number of infections to the RKI. If they do not work, no data will be delivered. The information is incomplete.

The chairman of the board of the World Medical Association, Frank Ulrich Montgomery, thinks this is "more than embarrassing".

The 69-year-old spoke on Deutschlandfunk of a "huge digitization problem still in Germany".

The fact that there are no reasonable numbers over the holidays is also due to federalism and different reporting systems in the individual federal states.

"You could really have done more here in the last year and a half," said Montgomery, who had come under criticism only a few days ago for Corona statements.

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Lauterbach: actual incidence two to three times as high

The lack of numbers is also a problem because politicians use them as the basis for making laws that have to be legally valid. Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) said on Wednesday that it can be assumed that the actual corona incidence in Germany is currently two to three times as high as reported. Because of the holidays, there is currently a "significant under-reporting" of cases of infection, Lauterbach said on Wednesday in Berlin. "The current reported incidence underestimates the danger we are in," he warned.

There is currently less testing - and fewer test results are reported.

In the health authorities, a general shortage of staff becomes noticeable over the holidays.

The Minister emphasized that for the Prime Minister's Conference with Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD) on January 7th, “a solid data base that is perfectly adequate for these purposes” will be available.