Scandal about recovered status: Streeck calculates hard with RKI decision – “no study known”

Created: 2022-02-06 06:13

By: Florian Naumann

The dispute about the shortened convalescent status never ends - a court considers the decision by RKI order to be unconstitutional.

News ticker.

• The RKI has shortened the recovered status from nine to six months.

  (see first report from February 4th, 2.40 p.m.)

• An administrative report has now declared this change to be unconstitutional, as there is no legal basis for the RKI to enforce such a change.

  (see first report from February 4th, 2.40 p.m.)

• Hendrik Streeck now clearly criticized the decision.

  (see update from February 5, 12:31 p.m.)

• This news ticker is updated regularly.

Update from February 5, 1:05 p.m .:

In the scandal about the recovered status, the FDP is now distancing itself from RKI boss Lothar Wieler.

The designated FDP General Secretary Bijan Djir-Sarai told

: "I have great respect for the achievements of the RKI boss Lothar Wieler in the past two years during the pandemic." He added: "Mr. Wieler can trust the FDP but due to this recent misconduct, which unfortunately is not an isolated case, we can no longer be sure.”

He also said: “The RKI cannot casually determine the shortening of the recovery period with the stroke of a pen and without any announcement.

This decision has an immediate impact on the daily lives of many people.

Optimal communication works differently.” When asked about Wieler’s future at the head of the RKI, the FDP politician said: “It is up to the Federal Minister of Health to decide on the personnel at the top of his sub-authorities.”

Healed status: Streeck calculates hard with RKI decision – “no study known”

Update from February 5, 12:31 p.m .:

The virologist Hendrik Streeck has now also spoken out in the scandal about the recovered status.

The RKI decision to shorten the recovered status to three months "to put it mildly, annoyed him," Streeck told

.

The virologist criticized that the reason given was "science", but he was "not aware of any study that could justify this decision".

On the contrary: according to Streeck's knowledge, all studies indicate that those who have recovered are just as well or even better protected than those who have been vaccinated.

From this point of view, the fact that the status is only reduced for those who have recovered makes little sense.

Update from February 5, 9:00 a.m .:

After an administrative court in Osnabrück declared the reduction of the convalescent status from nine to six months ordered by the RKI to be unconstitutional, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) now commented on Twitter. He pointed to a US study that found immunity to be low as little as three months after recovery from a mild omicron infection. The study supports the results of the RKI that the shortening of the convalescent status had come into force.

Karl Lauterbach is defending the content of the RKI's decision, which has recently been heavily criticized.

This is due to constitutional concerns.

Because the RKI decided to shorten the convalescent status at short notice and largely without consultation.

However, there is no legal basis for this.

Such a decision must be enforced by politicians.

First report from January 4th, 2:40 p.m.:

Osnabrück/Berlin – Next turn in the week-long dispute about the duration of the convalescent status in Germany?

An administrative court in Osnabrück, Lower Saxony, has declared the reduction from nine to six months invalid, as reported by the

.

Several restrictions must be observed: The judgment is not yet final - and according to the report it does not apply to the general public, but only to the applicant.

The court decided that he should now receive a six-month comprehensive proof of recovery from his district.

Further progress at the federal level remains to be seen.

Corona dispute: RKI decision for shortened convalescent status unconstitutional?

Nevertheless, the situation for the traffic light government and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) is already spicy*.

According to the picture, the judges referred to a conflict with the Basic Law: the reduction of the convalescence status had been put into effect by the RKI.

But there are doubts about this approach: the judges explained that there was no legal basis for delegating this decision to the RKI.

In a press conference with Karl Lauterbach, RKI President Lothar Wiehler explained which corona factors are important in the omicron wave.

© Wolfgang Kumm/dpa

This twist doesn't come as a complete surprise.

A Bundestag report had also had strong doubts about the decision-making power of the institute* - and also cited the German constitution against the procedure.

Politically, the decision, which was made at short notice and largely without consultation, has been making waves for weeks anyway.

After severe criticism of Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD), RKI boss Lothar Wieler apparently also came into the line of fire within the coalition *.

It seems possible that the traffic light will now be readjusted.

The conference of health ministers called on Monday to put the decision on the convalescent statute back in the hands of politicians.

Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) supported the demand, as reported by the

, among others .

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) *

.