The pandemic is “over” in Germany.
This was estimated by the German Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach during a press conference on Wednesday April 5, reports the German television channel ZDF.
To affirm it, it is based in particular on the
“good”
vaccination coverage in the country.
According to data from the Robert-Koch-Institute (RKI), responsible for disease control and prevention in Germany, 77.9% of Germans had received at least one dose of the vaccine by April 5, 2023. same date, it was 79.2% in France.
Concretely, this means that “
the last rules still in force expire on
April 7
,
notes the German government on its website.
This means that from the following day, April 8, it will no longer be compulsory to wear FFP2 masks
when visiting a doctor's office, hospital or retirement home
”.
“
We overcame the pandemic with a good balance sheet
”
,
also estimated Karl Lauterbach.
Likewise, the group of experts advising the government - equivalent to the former health council in France - met for the last time on Tuesday April 4 after its 33rd meeting.
It had been created in December 2021
Read alsoCovid-19: Germany begins to relax epidemic control measures
However, Germany's health minister said "
long school closures were not necessary
" in the country.
Like many European countries, Germany closed its schools for a long time to fight against the spread of the virus, in particular at the beginning of 2021. MP at the start of the pandemic, Karl Lauterbach only became Minister of Health in December 2021, when German Social Democratic Chancellor Olaf Scholz took office.
France, “exiting the state of health emergency”
In France, the Minister of Health François Braun, questioned on March 1 on
CNEWS
acknowledged that France had “
exited this state of health emergency
”, adding that “
we were probably in a situation that we will live for several years
”.
For wearing a mask in hospitals, "
it is up to health establishments to set the rules
"
,
confirms the French Hospital Federation (FHF) joined by
Le Figaro
.
It is nevertheless recommended by the government, in particular “
in closed places
”,
“in the presence of the elderly
” or “
in the event of symptoms
”.
Read alsoWhy does France's productivity keep unscrewing since the Covid?
On March 31, in a news note sent to the authorities, the Committee for monitoring and anticipating health risks (Covars) estimated that the Covid-19 was “still circulating at a rate and at a frequency which show that it
does
not has not become a “seasonal respiratory virus” like any other”
.
France had around 8,000 new daily cases of Covid-19 as of April 6, on average smoothed over seven days, a figure which remains low.
In Germany, it was nearly 2,500 cases per day on the same date.