RKI boss Wieler: "I will continue to wear a mask on the train"
Created: 06/12/2022, 11:45 am
By: Martina Lippl
"The pandemic is not over yet," clarifies RKI boss Lothar Wieler.
(Archive image) © Carsten Koall/dpa
Bavaria abolishes the obligation to wear masks on public transport.
RKI boss Wieler is still in favor.
Corona is not the only problem.
Berlin – The dreaded Corona winter wave is still a long time coming.
In Germany, the nationwide 7-day incidence on Tuesday morning is 204.2.
(previous week: 190.6; previous month: 269.2).
The Corona situation still seems relaxed.
But that can change.
"The virus is seasonal, and we agree that the number of cases will increase again in winter," says Lothar Wieler, President of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in an interview with the
Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung
.
"This also has to do with the fact that more people are coming together indoors, that fortunately social life has picked up speed again."
RKI boss Wieler: "There will be no pure corona wave in winter"
It is difficult to predict how high the number of corona cases will be.
At the moment it is noticeable that more and more people are getting infected with the flu.
The RKI boss estimates that "there will not be a pure corona wave in winter, but that a series of respiratory infections will spread in parallel."
respiratory infections
Rhinovirus, parainfluenza virus, other corona viruses and influenza are currently circulating.
The dynamics of infection in children are particularly dramatic.
Pediatric practices are currently overcrowded.
Children's hospitals are at the limit.
A wave of RSV - respiratory syncytial virus - makes the situation worse.
RKI boss: “I will definitely wear a mask on the train all winter”
It is therefore important to continue to wear a mask, because this keeps “the number of respiratory diseases within limits”.
The RKI boss had previously emphasized that it was important to isolate yourself if you had a corona infection in order to protect others.
The extent to which the measures are implemented is "ultimately a political decision," said Wieler in the
FAZ
interview.
“I will definitely wear a mask on the train throughout the winter.
And I'm happy about everyone who helps to keep the number of infections low," said Wieler.
Bavaria is pushing ahead and abolishing the obligation to wear masks on buses and trains
In Bavaria, the mask requirement on buses and trains will be history next week.
From December 10th there should only be a recommendation to wear the mask.
The need for masks to be worn on public transport had been discussed behind the scenes in the state government for a long time.
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Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Schleswig-Holstein, Hesse and Rhineland-Palatinate have lifted the obligation to isolate people who have tested positive for corona.
(ml with dpa material)