Corona summit: phased plan, compulsory vaccination, "Freedom Day" - that's what the Scholz group decided

Created: 02/16/2022, 18:29

By: Andreas Schmid

Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the cabinet meeting on Wednesday morning.

© Florian Gärtner/Photothek/Imago

Major relaxation of corona in Germany: the federal and state governments have agreed on massive adjustments to the measures.

Freedom Day is approaching.

An overview.

Berlin - "We deserved it to be a bit better," said Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz at the press conference after the Corona summit.

"We have achieved what we wanted with our measures." That is why one can "open up optimistic perspectives."

Most important point: On March 20th, almost all Corona rules will fall.

The current Infection Protection Act, the legal basis for measures such as contact restrictions, ends the day before.

The date is equivalent to a "Freedom Day" (freedom day) as it currently exists in some European countries.

Only “basic protective measures” such as the obligation to wear masks on buses and trains should remain.

By that date, a three-step plan should pave the way out of the pandemic.

Corona summit: three-stage plan until March 20th

• 1st step (with immediate effect):

  No more 2G in retail nationwide and loosening of contact at private meetings.

  All restrictions are lifted for those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered.

  Means: You can meet again without an upper limit.

  The stricter rules continue to apply to those who have not been vaccinated (own household plus a maximum of two other people; under-14s excluded).

  Schleswig-Holstein pleaded for a "moderate adjustment" even for unvaccinated people.

• 2nd step (from March 4th)

  : 3G instead of 2G in gastronomy and for overnight stays.

  In addition, clubs and discotheques are allowed to open again (with 2Gplus).

  More spectators should be allowed to attend major national events such as Bundesliga games.

  Specifically: occupancy of 75 percent, but a maximum of 25,000 viewers.

  For indoor events: 60 percent occupancy, maximum 6,000 spectators.

• 3rd step (from March 20th)

  : "All more profound protective measures" are dropped.

• Future legal situation

  : If the infection rate worsens significantly after March 20th, the federal government should quickly initiate the necessary legislative procedures for new protective measures.

The federal-state group discussed further adjustments, for example in the area of ​​​​care vaccination or the recovered status.

The most important changes: The deadline for facility-related vaccinations is no longer applicable.

The Robert Koch Institute should no longer decide on the recovery status.

All adjustments at a glance.

New corona rules: compulsory vaccination, recovered status, short-time work allowance

• General obligation to vaccinate

  : The federal and state governments want to continue to adhere to the general obligation to vaccinate.

  However, that will be decided in the Bundestag, where a non-affiliated vote is planned for mid-March.

  Several applications are under discussion, such as: no compulsory vaccination, compulsory vaccination on demand, compulsory vaccination from the age of 18, compulsory vaccination from the age of 50.

• Vaccination register

  : For the time being there should be no vaccination register.

  "There is the question of whether it really needs it," said Scholz.

  Hesse, Baden-Württemberg and Saxony had called for this in the MPK in vain.

• Nursing vaccination obligation

  : The facility-related vaccination obligation should also be implemented.

  However, the federal and state governments are detaching themselves from the deadline of March 15th.

  By that date, all nurses should have been vaccinated or recovered, otherwise they are no longer allowed to work.

  Now it says from the federal-state summit: “The health authorities have a discretion in the implementation of the measures.

  A ban on entry represents the last step.

  The opportunity principle applies to fine proceedings.

  Lawyers understand this to mean the freedom of action of an authority in the event of a threat to public safety and order.

• Recovered status - new responsibility

  : In future, the Paul Ehrlich Institute and Robert Koch Institute will no longer decide on the recovered status*.

  In mid-January, the change to 90 days caused confusion and criticism.

  The RKI announced it almost overnight after it had been delegated decision-making power by the Federal Council (under the direction of Minister of Health Lauterbach) *.

• Recovered status – no new rule for the time being

  : In an interim draft resolution available on

  Merkur.de

  *, an immediate adjustment to the 90-day rule was discussed.

  People should recover six months after corona infection as recovered.

  Doubly vaccinated who became infected with Covid-19, even nine.

  This passage has been removed from the decision paper.

  This means that there is at least no new rule immediately.

• Travel

  : New rules for classifying countries as high-risk areas.

  This "takes into account the incidences that have increased worldwide due to Omikron." The aim of the adjustment is to make travel easier for families, "since children under the age of twelve are often not vaccinated and therefore cannot escape quarantine".

  It is still unclear from what incidence a country is considered a high-risk area.

• Testing

  : The prime ministers are demanding a testing strategy from the federal government beyond March 31.

  The test regulation is to be extended.

  According to Chancellor Scholz, testing remains an important instrument of pandemic policy.

• Corona drug Paxlovid

  : The Ministry of Health is currently taking care of the delivery of the anti-corona pill Paxlovid*.

  "If the drug is taken early, it is highly effective against Covid-19," says the decision paper.

  Health Minister Lauterbach already praised Paxlovid as "extremely promising" in January.

• Short- time work allowance

  : The period of entitlement and special regulations for short-time work allowance are extended beyond March 31, the bridging aid IV until June 30.

If the Corona situation worsens, there will be a new federal-state meeting on March 17th.

"If the situation requires it, they come together earlier."