The number of people affected by the vaccination scandal in the Lower Saxony district of Friesland has risen to 10,183. District Administrator Sven Ambrosy (SPD) said on Friday that the exact times when the accused nurse was on duty had been checked again. So far, the authorities had assumed 8 557 people affected. The new numbers have been available since Friday morning. Those affected should be informed later in the day. He deeply regrets that so many people have suffered from the wrongdoing of a single person.
The approximately 40-year-old registered nurse is accused of exchanging the vaccine for a saline solution in at least six cases at the Schortens-Roffhausen vaccination center in April. According to the investigators, the reason she gave was that she broke an ampoule with the vaccine. For fear of being released, she only filled the syringes with table salt. On Tuesday, the district announced that the investigators could not rule out that the woman had previously used table salt several times. That is why more than 8 500 people would have to be vaccinated. Ambrosy emphasized that the authorities are now calling on all vaccinated persons in the period in question to be vaccinated again as part of the security measures. So far, 5,047 appointments for follow-up vaccinations have already been allocated. The first vaccinations should be given on Friday. Then between 200 and 400 additional vaccinations per day are planned.
The district was only informed by the police on Thursday afternoon that the nurse, who had been dismissed without notice, claimed that she had not only drawn up table salt in the syringes, said the district administrator. According to her lawyer, she replaced the missing vaccine from the broken bottle with vaccine residues from other ampoules. This new information reaffirmed the county’s risk assessment, Ambrosy said. As a registered nurse, she should have known that it was forbidden to mix the vaccine with residues from other ampoules. In addition, the mixture is too diluted to ensure a successful vaccination. Ambrosy did not want to assess whether the woman was against vaccination and possibly acted for political reasons. That is the task of the investigative authorities. (08/13/2021)
Incidence rises to 30.1
The seven-day incidence continues to rise. According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), it was 30.1 – the previous day the value was 27.6. A week ago it was 20.4. The health authorities in Germany last reported 5578 new corona infections to the RKI within one day. A week ago the value was 3448 infections. Across Germany, 19 other people died within 24 hours in connection with the virus. A week ago there were 24 deaths. This brings the total number of reported deaths to 91,853.
The incidence has so far been the basis for many corona restrictions in the pandemic, for example as part of the federal emergency brake that expired at the end of June. In the future, other values such as hospital admissions are to be taken into account to a greater extent. (08/13/2021)
Intensive care physicians call for a survey on vaccination rates
Intensive care physicians are calling for an independent, representative population survey on the level of vaccination in Germany. “Vaccination is the decisive success factor in the pandemic. We must do everything we can to strengthen confidence in the vaccination campaign,” said Gernot Marx, President of the German Interdisciplinary Association for Intensive Care and Emergency Medicine (DIVI), the newspapers of the Funke media group. It is therefore important to quickly check the difference reported by the Robert Koch Institute between the official registration numbers and survey information on the vaccination rate of under 60-year-olds by means of an independent, representative survey.
“Reliable figures are the basis for the acceptance of the corona measures,” said Marx. “If the vaccination rate in the group of 18 to 59 year olds is actually much higher than reported, we would have a much more relaxed situation with a view to autumn.”
According to a survey by the RKI, more adults in Germany seem to have been vaccinated at least once than officially recorded so far. The difference to the so-called digital vaccination rate monitoring (DIM), on which the vaccination dashboard is based, was particularly noticeable in the age group of 18 to 59 year olds, according to an RKI report on the survey. While in the survey called Covimo (short for: Covid-19 vaccination rate monitoring) 79 percent of adults under 60 years of age stated that they had been vaccinated at least once, according to the official system it was 59 percent.
FDP General Secretary Volker Wissing told the Funke newspapers that the uncertainty about the actual vaccination rate was “a renewed nuisance in the management of this crisis”. The incidence values and the vaccination rate would have concrete effects on people’s everyday lives. “Now the vaccination quota, which is so important for the population’s herd immunity, is in question because the federal government does not have reliable figures.” (08/12/2021)
Nationwide incidence rises to 27.6
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reports 5638 new positive tests. That is 2099 more than on Thursday a week ago, when 3539 new infections were reported. The seven-day incidence increases to 27.6 from 25.1 the previous day. 17 other people died related to the virus. This increases the number of reported deaths to 91,834 within 24 hours. In total, more than 3.80 million corona tests have so far been positive in Germany. (08/12/2021)
So few first vaccinations as last in January
On Tuesday, a total of more than 404,000 vaccinations were carried out nationwide – of which more than 334,800 doses resulted in a complete vaccination. Only about 70,000 people had their first corona vaccination that day. So few first vaccinations on a Tuesday were last given on January 12th. Back then, at the very beginning of the German vaccination campaign, more than 78,000 people were given a vaccine for the first time.
According to the Federal Ministry of Health on Wednesday, just under 46.2 million people or 55.6 percent of the total population are fully vaccinated. 52.1 million people or 62.7 percent of all residents received at least a first dose.
In a comparison of the federal states, Bremen is still at the top with 71.7 percent at least once and 65.2 percent fully vaccinated residents. At the bottom of the list is Saxony with 53.0 percent at least once and 49.1 percent fully vaccinated residents. A total of 95.8 million corona vaccine doses have been administered in Germany since the start of the campaign, which according to the Federal Ministry of Health’s vaccination dashboard has now been running for 229 days. (08/11/2021)
Germany does without Moderna cans
In view of the declining willingness to vaccinate, Germany waived the delivery of around 2.65 million vaccine doses from the manufacturer Moderna. This emerges from a list of the Federal Ministry of Health, about which the mirrors had reported. Two batches, each with a good 1.3 million cans, which were promised for the first two weeks of August, will therefore be left to other EU countries.
Last week it became known that the Federal Republic of Germany would waive doses of the corona vaccine from Johnson & Johnson in favor of other countries, which Germany would actually be entitled to under EU treaties. In addition, all deliveries from the manufacturer Astra Zeneca are currently being donated to the international aid initiative Covax. (08/11/2021)
Ministry: Tests for retirement home visitors remain free
Anyone who needs a corona test to visit an old people’s or nursing home does not have to pay for it even after the free citizen tests have been abolished on October 11th. A spokesman for the Federal Ministry of Health told the Evangelical Press Service: “The regulations for nursing homes remain as they are. The visitor test remains free.” Tests offer good protection for old people’s homes and care facilities and make everyday life there safer.
After the decision of the Prime Minister’s Conference on Tuesday, social associations demanded that the tests of visitors, staff and residents must remain free and include those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered. VdK President Verena Bentele warned that 40 corona outbreaks in June of this year alone showed how important it is to continue to be able to test all employees, residents and visitors on site free of charge.
Free tests are guaranteed by the Corona protective screen for care facilities until the end of September. The facilities are reimbursed for the expenses. According to the Ministry of Health, the regulations will now also be maintained in the autumn. According to the latest federal-state decision, the so-called 3-G rule will also apply nationwide from 23 August, according to which only those who have been vaccinated, recovered or those who have tested negative are allowed to enter retirement and nursing homes. (08/11/2021)
Spahn: There will be no new lockdown for those who have been vaccinated
After the corona decisions by the federal and state governments, Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) gave all vaccinated people hope for a more relaxed autumn and winter. “For these three out of four adults who have had themselves vaccinated, there will be no new lockdown,” said the CDU politician in an ARD “Extra” on Tuesday evening. That is the current legal situation and regulated by federal law. The vaccinated could be sure that there would be no new restrictions for them.
Spahn again appealed to the population to get vaccinated. Not enough people have yet been vaccinated to avoid a very heavy burden or overload of the health system.
Union Chancellor candidate Laschet and Bavaria’s Prime Minister Söder had already spoken out against a second lockdown for those who had been vaccinated and those who had recovered. In the ARD “Tagesthemen” Söder said on Tuesday evening that it is possible that the rules for unvaccinated people will be tightened in the future. A debate about access only for vaccinated and convalescent people (“2-G”) will probably follow soon, said Söder. (08/11/2021)