RKI "firmly" expects a new corona wave - expert expresses fear of easing

Created: 02/15/2022 05:37

By: Franziska Schwarz

The new infections are declining.

However, an expert expects a new wave if Germany loosens up soon.

The news ticker.

• The Robert Koch Institute (RKI)* reports a falling incidence*.

• When it comes to easing, however, experts are divided before the Corona summit on February 16 (see first report).

• Opponents of the measures wanted to get to Winfried Kretschmann's (Green) house.

• An expert expects a new corona wave in March if the measures are relaxed (see update from February 14, 3:07 p.m.).

• This news ticker about Corona* in Germany* is updated regularly.

Update from February 14, 4:10 p.m .:

According to the German Hospital Society (DKG), the easing of the corona situation will only become noticeable in the course of March with a significant reduction in the number of occupancy.

In a statement published on Sunday evening, the Federal Government’s Expert Council linked a possible relaxation of the corona measures to the situation in the hospitals: “Reducing state infection control measures seems sensible as soon as there is a stable drop in hospitalization and intensive care admissions and occupancy.” On Wednesday The federal and state governments will be advised on the further Corona course.

"The very high incidences of the past few weeks only arrive in the clinics with a time delay," explained Gerald Gass, CEO of the DKG.

"We had more than a million infected people in the last week, the hospital cases will reach us in around 7 to 10 days." Even if the hospitalization rate for the Omicron variant currently circulating is significantly lower than for Delta, the numbers would be positive Continue to increase those tested in the clinics over the next two to three weeks.

"It's good that the increase in intensive care units has been very small to date."

Corona in Germany: Expert expresses fear of easing

Update from February 14, 3:07 p.m .:

The Ulm medical statistician Ulf Dennler considers the relaxation of the corona measures in March to be possible, but also predicts a new corona wave in this case.

Dennler said on Monday at an expert hearing of the Ministry of Social Affairs.

The easing in March was followed by a serious and violent sixth corona wave until mid-March.

However, this would probably result in a significantly lower "severity of the disease" than previous waves and thus not an excessively heavy additional burden for the hospitals.

Update from February 14, 1:34 p.m .:

While the RKI’s Corona situation report gives hope that the omicron wave will subside soon and politicians are already discussing easing, Federal Education Minister Bettina Stark-Watzinger (FDP) warns against excessive easing steps in schools .

These would “first of all continue to need a high level of protection, which includes regular tests and also wearing a mask,” the minister told the Funke newspapers on Monday.

"Easing in the education sector should be regionally differentiated if the number of infections is falling significantly and taking into account the vaccination rate of children and young people."

The German Teachers' Association also warned that face-to-face teaching should not be jeopardized by loosening restrictions too quickly.

The association hopes that health protection measures and restrictions in schools can be relaxed and dismantled in the foreseeable future, said association president Heinz-Peter Meidinger to the newspapers of the Funke media group.

According to the association, the time for this has “not yet come”.

Corona status report seeps through: RKI “firmly” expects a new wave

First report from February 14, 2022:

Berlin - The nationwide 7-day incidence has fallen for the second day in a row - although the meaningfulness of the data is currently limited.

The RKI gave the value on Monday morning as 1459.8.

In addition, 42 further corona deaths were recorded within one day.

It is difficult to judge whether this really means a turnaround in the infection process.

It could also be that the drop is a result of an overloaded reporting and testing system.

This plays a major role because the next Prime Minister's Conference (MPK for short, or colloquially "Corona Summit") with Chancellor Olaf Scholz* (SPD*) will take place on February 16th.

A first draft resolution for the meeting has meanwhile leaked out.

According to a newspaper report, the RKI "firmly" expects a new Corona * wave in autumn.

"The endemic has not yet been reached - we are in a transition phase," reported Die

, citing an internal RKI assessment of the situation.

German Corona Expert Council sees the mask requirement falling

The Corona Expert Council has also positioned itself in front of the MPK in a statement: For the coming weeks, a “plateau formation” and a subsequent “drop” in the number of infections* can be expected, the federal government body wrote on Sunday evening.

Relaxation should, however, be communicated in an “understandable” way.

The mask requirement, for example, could be temporarily lifted “if the number of infections is sufficiently low”.

However, the experts reckon that it could become necessary again indoors in the coming autumn and winter.

Before the Corona summit: tests in random samples under discussion

Isolation and testing* remain "of great importance in the current phase," the paper continues.

The government should check whether, in times of easing, it also randomly tests people without symptoms in order to identify “significant changes in the dynamics of the infection” at an early stage.

However, the paper also states that opening too early carries the risk of a renewed increase in the burden of disease.

The experts emphasized that permanent easing is “closely linked to achieving a high vaccination rate and, at the same time, to acting independently” on the part of all citizens.

DNA advertising for a German rapid corona test center: Experts are considering random testing.

© Moritz Frankenberg/dpa

Corona policy opponents target Green politicians

Critics of the Corona policy have tried to get to the home of Baden-Württemberg Prime Minister Winfried Kretschmann (Greens *).

Demonstrators wanted to bypass a road blockade.

However, this was prevented, the police said.

During the pandemic*, it has often happened that the protests of the opponents of the Corona measures are carried in front of the homes of politicians.

At the beginning of December 2021, for example, there was a torch parade in front of the home of the Saxon Minister of Health Petra Köpping (SPD*).