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Virologist Christian Drosten: »mRNA technology is a huge breakthrough, also for cancer and other infectious diseases«
Photo: Clemens Bilan / EPA-EFE
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Iran reports deaths from omicron
6:53 a.m .:
The Iranian Ministry of Health has reported deaths after an omicron infection for the first time. So far, three Iranians have died from the new variant, and more than 1,100 people have been infected nationwide, the ministry said on Sunday, according to the Tasnim news agency. Despite the acute economic crisis, the government in Tehran is again planning strict corona restrictions up to and including a lockdown.
Iran was particularly hard hit by the corona pandemic up until the summer, but the situation eased after the vaccination campaign was accelerated.
So far, more than 60 percent of the almost 84 million Iranians have been vaccinated twice, and booster vaccinations are already being administered.
Since the outbreak of the pandemic in February 2020, more than 132,000 corona deaths and more than 6.2 million infected people have been registered in the country.
Schulze against the release of vaccine patents
6.35
a.m .: In the dispute over the release of patents for corona vaccines, Federal Development Minister Svenja Schulze (SPD) has been unyielding. "I doubt that the developing countries will get vaccines more easily if we release the patents," Schulze told the newspapers of the Funke media group (Monday editions). Corporate partnerships for the production of mRNA vaccines under license are helpful. The know-how must be "passed on to developing countries," demanded the minister.
Schulze denied that he shyed away from conflict with the manufacturers when it came to patents.
“I'm here for pragmatism.
Theoretical fundamental positions won't get us anywhere," she warned.
»It is important that the production is running.
And right now, in the pandemic, that works best and fastest together with the companies.«
At the same time, the SPD politician advocated supporting developing countries in setting up their own vaccine production.
"My goal is that developing countries will no longer be dependent on vaccine donations in the future," said Schulze.
For this it is “very important that they set up their own vaccine production”.
Germany is helping "with money and know-how".
She is also promoting this in the EU and as part of the German G7 presidency.
Lateral thinkers send threatening letters to schools
6.10 a.m .:
According to the federal government, “lateral thinkers”, “Reichsbürger” and so-called self-administrators have mobilized with actions in front of schools and also with threatening letters against the current corona measures. The federal government is aware that opponents of the measures and the vaccination campaign have demonstrated in individual cases in front of school buildings and "sometimes also sought dialogue with pupils". This resulted from a response from the Federal Ministry of the Interior to a request from the left, which the dpa news agency has received. "Some of these were also leading figures in the 'lateral thinking movement'," the ministry continues.
In addition, the government reports letters, e-mails and threatening letters that "Reich citizens" and so-called self-governors have sent to schools, authorities, teachers' colleges and day-care centers.
In some letters, “pseudo-legal arguments” are given that deny the legal validity of the corona or mask regulations.
"Reichsbürger" and "Selbstverwalter" do not recognize the Federal Republic of Germany and its legal system.
The cultural sector is allowed to reopen in Denmark
6.01 a.m .:
Denmark has experienced an immense increase in the number of new infections in the past few weeks – nevertheless, the corona restrictions for the cultural sector are being relaxed in Germany’s northernmost neighbor.
Museums, zoos, amusement parks and other facilities are allowed to reopen from this Sunday.
The same applies to cinemas, theaters and venues such as concert halls, here with a cap on visitors.
In many places, however, visitors have to wear mouth and nose protection and use a corona passport to prove that they have been vaccinated, recovered or tested negative.
In contrast, the Danes cannot go to discos again: nightlife will remain closed until at least the end of the month.
Survey - Majority of Germans for compulsory vaccination
5.42 a.m .:
A clear majority of people in Germany would support compulsory vaccination.
This is the result of a representative survey with 1004 respondents by the opinion research institute Insa for the "Bild am Sonntag".
According to the report, 60 percent support compulsory vaccination, while 33 percent oppose it.
71 percent also believed that the federal government did not give a clear direction in corona policy.
The opposite believed 23 percent.
61 percent of those surveyed said that Olaf Scholz did not show enough leadership in corona politics, 26 percent believed the opposite.
Corona pandemic leads to bottlenecks in animal vaccines
5.01
a.m .: The corona pandemic has apparently also led to a shortage of vaccines for pets. “There have been bottlenecks again and again since last year,” said Astrid Behr, spokeswoman for the Federal Association of Practicing Veterinarians in Frankfurt am Main. At the moment, vaccines for cats in particular are affected, but also for rabbits. "The only thing left for pet owners is to consult their veterinarian and be informed as soon as the vaccine is available again."
In addition to partially interrupted supply chains, the cause is the increased demand for pets during the corona period, which in turn is associated with an increased need for vaccines, said a spokesman for the manufacturer Boehringer Ingelheim.
It cannot be fully covered at the moment.
Adjustments to the production volume of vaccines are “only possible with a significant time delay due to the complex nature of biological products and the strictly regulated environment”.
Clinics fear more Covid patients in the normal wards
4.51 a.m.:
The German clinics are already feeling the first effects of the omicron wave through more patient admissions with Covid diseases on the normal wards. "We are already seeing this increase in the normal wards in some regions, for example in Bremen, Berlin, Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein," says the President of the German Hospital Society (DKG), Gerald Gass, of the "Augsburger Allgemeine". If the models come true, one must expect more than 100,000 infected people per day very soon. Many of them would have to be hospitalized. But because of the highly contagious omicron variant, there will be more staff shortages in the clinics. He therefore appeals to general practitioners and specialists to treat patients who do not necessarily have to be treated in hospital as outpatients as far as possible.
Beijing reports the first omicron case – just under three weeks before the Olympics
4.25 a.m .:
Almost three weeks before the start of the Winter Olympics in Beijing, the Chinese capital registered a case of the highly contagious omicron variant of the corona virus for the first time.
Overall, the health authorities reported 65 infections across China on Sunday.
Despite the still low numbers, Omikron is likely to put China's strict zero-Covid strategy with mass tests, curfews, quarantine and isolation to the test shortly before the start of the Winter Olympics.
RKI reports 52,504 new infections, incidence rises to over 500
3.50 a.m .:
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reports 52,504 new corona infections.
That is 15,952 more cases than on Sunday a week ago.
The nationwide seven-day incidence hits a new high, rising to 515.7 from 497.1 the previous day.
The value indicates how many people per 100,000 inhabitants have contracted the corona virus in the past seven days.
47 people died in connection with the virus.
This increases the number of reported deaths to 115,619.
So far, more than 7.9 million corona tests have been positive in Germany.
Lauterbach is calling on citizens to carry out regular rapid tests because of Omikron
2.46 a.m .:
Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) has called on citizens to test themselves in the omicron wave “several times a week” with a quick test for the corona virus. "Then they have a good certainty that they are really not infected if the result is negative," Lauterbach told the "Bild am Sonntag". The repetitions of the test are necessary because the rapid tests do not always work at the beginning of an infection.
According to Lauterbach, people who have already received a booster vaccination against Corona should also be even more careful after contact with an infected person and “do a quick test every day”.
Those who have tested themselves for a week are "on the safe side".
On the days after the contact, Lauterbach advises wearing FFP2 masks consistently “as soon as you are in a room with people”.
More Monday demonstrators against Corona measures
1.52 a.m .:
The number of participants in the Monday demonstrations against the Corona measures has increased by 46 percent in the past few weeks, according to “Bild am Sonntag”.
According to the Federal Police, on December 27, 179,200 people took part in a total of 967 demonstrations.
On January 3, there were already 236,000 participants in 1090 and last Monday 261,400 participants in 1309 demonstrations.
According to the authorities, fewer than 10,000 people demonstrated against measures before the wave of infections in autumn.
Development minister does not want to send expired vaccines to Africa
1.10 a.m
.: Development Minister Svenja Schulze condemns donations of vaccine doses with a short shelf life to developing countries.
"Africa is not the rest ramp for expired vaccines," Schulze told the newspapers of the Funke media group.
Plannable deliveries are necessary in order to be able to vaccinate the vaccine.
You can only defeat the pandemic if the whole world is vaccinated.
"If this doesn't succeed, we go into an endless loop with ever new mutations."
Lauterbach: Corona vaccination should include three doses
0.30 a.m .:
According to Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach, compulsory vaccination against the corona virus should include three syringes. 'A complete vaccination consists of three doses. Fully vaccinated people are protected against all corona variants - at least against serious illness and death. The obligation to vaccinate must be based on this," said the SPD politician of the "Bild am Sonntag".
Scientists around the world agree that the emergence of a variant against which you have no protection as a person who has been vaccinated three times is extremely unlikely.
At the same time, the minister warned: "The variant alphabet will not end with omicron." It is quite possible that a mutated delta type will have to be dealt with in the autumn.
Anyone who now falls ill with omicron without being vaccinated would probably have protection against infection of well under 50 percent against a new Delta variant in autumn, he said.
»Without additional vaccinations, these people would then be at high risk.
There is therefore no way around vaccination,” says Lauterbach.
Lauterbach: Germany faces difficult weeks
0.21 a.m .:
Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach warns of a high number of deaths and massive restrictions on hospital treatments in view of the omicron wave and the low vaccination rate in Germany.
"We are threatened with very difficult weeks in Germany," Lauterbach told the "Bild am Sonntag".
At the moment, it is mainly the younger people with many contacts who are ill.
But as soon as the elderly become infected, the number of hospital admissions will increase again.
Then the space in the intensive care units and in the normal wards could become scarce.
In international comparison, Germany has an older population with many chronically ill people.
This is "flammable".
Austria again corona high risk area
12:01 a.m .:
The federal government classifies Austria again as a corona high-risk area. The regulation has been in effect since midnight and has concrete consequences: Anyone entering Germany from a high-risk area and who does not have at least full basic protection with the second vaccination that is usually necessary or has recovered must be in quarantine for ten days. You can get rid of it with a negative test after five days at the earliest. For children who have not yet reached the age of six, the quarantine ends automatically five days after entry.
The upgrade due to high corona numbers affects almost all of Austria, as the Robert Koch Institute announced on Friday.
Exceptions are the communities of Mittelberg and Jungholz near the border and the Riißtal in the community of Vomp and Eben am Achensee.
This means that all nine of Germany's neighboring countries are now on the risk list.
Denmark, Poland, the Czech Republic, Switzerland, France, Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands have long been designated as high-risk areas.
mik/wal/dpa/Reuters/AFP
