Ministers call for preparations for the Corona wave from autumn
Created: 05/16/2022Updated: 05/16/2022 16:23
Petra Grimm-Benne (SPD), Minister for Labour, Social Affairs and Integration.
© Klaus-Dietmar Gabbert/dpa/archive image
The health ministers of the federal states are pushing for timely preparations for a new corona wave in Germany from autumn.
“The corona pandemic is not over yet.
We must not be fooled by the currently declining incidences," said Petra Grimm-Benne, Chairwoman of the Conference of Health Ministers from Saxony-Anhalt, after a video call with Federal Minister Karl Lauterbach (both SPD) on Monday.
Magdeburg/Berlin - The federal government should therefore quickly draw up a "master plan" and coordinate it with the federal states.
This should also include an adjustment of the Infection Protection Act.
Lauterbach expressly welcomed the decision.
"The countries must be able to react to a possible flare-up of the pandemic," said the SPD politician to the German Press Agency.
To do this, they would need more instruments than the current law provides.
“We have to be prepared for the cold season.
A clear legal framework is part of it,” said Lauterbach.
He had already announced a pandemic concept for the fall.
In a resolution passed unanimously by the federal states, the federal government is asked to initiate the legislative process as soon as possible.
From autumn, for example, a mask requirement indoors could be reacted to.
In addition, there should be obligations to submit vaccination, convalescence or test certificates with corresponding access restrictions for risky areas and facilities - i.e. regulations such as 2G or 3G.
According to the information, binding infection protection concepts are also mentioned.
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The recently amended Infection Protection Act runs until September 23rd.
General mask requirements for events or when shopping as well as 2G and 3G regulations have therefore been eliminated since the beginning of April.
For the time being, “basic protection” applies – for example with mask requirements in buses, trains, clinics, practices and nursing homes.
Irrespective of state requirements, however, there are also further protection rules with mask requirements in many places, for example in cultural institutions.
Lauterbach had warned at the weekend of a return of the delta variant of the corona virus, which leads to more severe courses than the current Omicron variant.
Saxony-Anhalt's head of department Grimm-Benne also explained: "Looking ahead to autumn and winter, we have to expect new virus variants to appear." dpa
