The seven-day incidence in Germany has again increased significantly. The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced an increase from 130.2 to 139.2. The health authorities reported 24,669 new infections within 24 hours. 121 people died.
In view of the spread of the corona virus, the RKI warned in its latest weekly report of a growing risk of infection. “With the current seven-day incidences, there is an increasing likelihood of infectious contacts.” It is “strongly recommended” to get vaccinated against Covid-19 and to ensure that you are fully vaccinated. What is meant is that you should also get the second injection, which is provided for almost all corona vaccines.
The possibility of a booster vaccination should be used by the groups to which the Standing Vaccination Commission recommends it, is in the weekly report. If you have mild symptoms, you should stay at home and get tested, if possible with PCR, tweeted the RKI. This also applies to those who have been vaccinated. Unnecessary contacts should be reduced and the rules of conduct for protection against infections should be strictly adhered to.
The RKI notes that the proportion of people who have been vaccinated has hardly increased in the past few weeks. Citing own calculations, it was said that a “pronounced effect” of the corona vaccination to prevent Covid 19 diseases and hospital admissions in Germany has been proven. The RKI compared the respective incidences in the unvaccinated and the fully vaccinated population.
Result: In the vaccinated population, both the weekly incidence of cases with symptoms and the incidence of hospital admissions were well below the respective values of the unvaccinated population, it said. This applies to the two age groups analyzed (18 to 59 and from 60 years of age) and to the entire study period from mid-July to mid-October.
Regarding the general corona situation, the report says that the rising trend of seven-day incidences became visible in all age groups last week. Abrupt increases also affect the elderly – in people over 90, the seven-day incidence rose from 63 to 108 in a weekly comparison. There has been another significant increase in outbreaks in old people’s and nursing homes and medical facilities, it said. “This year’s case numbers are significantly higher than in the same period last year.” The RKI has been emphasizing since the summer that it is expecting increasing numbers for autumn and winter. (29.10.2021)
Sharply increasing numbers of new infections in Austria
In Austria, the number of new corona infections has risen sharply again. According to the authorities, 5861 new cases were counted within 24 hours. This value is well above the average of the past seven days with around 4000 cases. The seven-day incidence climbed to 313 cases per 100,000 population. The Melk district, about 90 kilometers west of Vienna, recorded an Austrian peak for the seven-day incidence of more than 1,000 cases per 100,000 inhabitants.
For example, in the state of Tyrol, the protective measures are now being significantly increased. From November 8th, access to major events for more than 500 people and to night gastronomy will only be possible for genesis and vaccinated people, the country announced on Friday. A test is no longer enough. The situation in the hospitals threatens to become critical. It can no longer be ruled out that routine operations will have to be postponed in the foreseeable future, said Governor Günther Platter. Therefore, as a precaution, an FFP2 mask requirement is being reintroduced for everyone in museums and libraries as well as in all retail.
With increasing utilization of the intensive care units, there are sometimes significant restrictions across Austria, especially for all those who have not been vaccinated. In extreme cases, this can lead to a lockdown for this group. (October 29, 2021)
2-G rule on Cologne carnival stages
The 2-G rule applies on stage at the Cologne Carnival. All artists have to be vaccinated or recovered, said a spokesman for the Cologne Carnival Festival Committee. At least 3GPlus applies to spectators at hall events, which means that you either have to be vaccinated, recovered or tested with a PCR test. However, the individual organizer can always go beyond this and specify 2G. For the artists, who usually appear at different events in one evening, it is therefore practically impossible not to be vaccinated or recovered, said the spokesman for the festival committee. In the Düsseldorf Carnival, 2G generally applies to hall events. (October 29, 2021)
Concern about corona effects is growing
With the sharp rise in the number of corona infections, concerns about possible infection are growing in Germany. In a survey by the ZDF Politbarometer, 40 percent of those questioned said they felt their health was at risk. Two weeks ago it was only 31 percent. 57 percent do not consider their health to be at risk. More than half of those surveyed expect a new corona wave with significantly higher numbers of infections in the coming winter.
At 62 percent, the majority of people are in favor of the 2-G rule applying nationwide in restaurants, in the leisure and cultural sector, so that only those who have been vaccinated and those who have recovered are allowed access. 36 percent don’t think that’s a good thing. 71 percent also think it is right that adults who do not want to be vaccinated have to pay for their rapid corona tests. 28 percent are against it. (29.10.2021)
Deutsche Bahn calls for a mask to be worn by Easter
DB regional boss Jörg Sandvoss hopes that mask regulations in local public transport will continue to exist in the winter season. “The masks are worn consistently,” he said at a local public transport industry meeting in Frankfurt am Main. In the summer of 2020 there was an even bigger problem with mask refusers in large cities. “That is gone. The acceptance of the masks is extremely high. That is why it is important for us, if the pandemic situation comes to an end, that there are at least regulations that we maintain the mask requirement in public transport in the winter season until Easter.” At the moment the mask “definitely contributes to the feeling of security”.
Sandvoss sees the return of confidence in being able to use local public transport despite the ongoing pandemic. “We are now at a level of 70, sometimes 80 percent of the pre-Corona time.” In rural areas it is a little less, in the cities, on the other hand, there is sometimes more than 80 percent of the passenger volume. “We have invested a lot in additional hygiene and safety,” he said. (October 29, 2021)
Thailand opens to vaccinated people from 46 countries – including Germany
A few days before the opening of Thailand to international tourism, the authorities of the Southeast Asian country announced the rules for vacationers in detail. From Monday onwards, the destination of many travelers will again receive fully vaccinated holiday guests from 46 countries for quarantine-free holidays – including those looking for relaxation from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. So that the number of infections does not rise again, the holiday guests have to meet some requirements.
Interested parties must have stayed in one or more of the 46 countries that the government considers safe for 21 days before departure. In addition, a PCR test carried out a maximum of 72 hours before the flight and one after the arrival in Thailand is required. A reservation for one night is also possible in a so-called SHA-Plus-Hotel duty, where guests have to wait for the test result. If the result is negative, they can move freely across Thailand from the second day, as Naruechai Ninnart from the Consular Affairs Department emphasized.
The prerequisites also include health insurance, which also covers the holidaymaker’s case of Covid 19 disease, as well as downloading a tracking app (“Mor Chana”) for the duration of the stay. From November 1st, the new “Thailand Pass”, for which travelers have to register, is to replace the complicated previous procedure of the “Certificate of Entry”. Children up to and including eleven years of age do not need to show a vaccination if their parents are vaccinated. A vaccination certificate is required for adolescents from the age of twelve. Unvaccinated people continue to have to stay in hotel quarantine for ten days. (29.10.2021)
65 percent of those who have not been vaccinated do not want to be vaccinated under any circumstances
According to a survey, almost nine out of ten non-vaccinated people in Germany are unlikely to want to be vaccinated against corona in the next eight weeks. According to the Forsa survey published online on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Health, 65 percent have no plans to do so. 23 percent tend to say no. Only five percent definitely or more likely plan to get vaccinated in the next two months. Seven percent are still undecided.
According to the Robert Koch Institute, 66.5 percent of the total population in Germany are currently fully vaccinated. 69.3 percent received at least one dose of vaccine. The RKI assumes, however, that among adults, probably more people are vaccinated than the registration data suggest.
According to the survey, 69 percent of non-vaccinated people fully or completely share the view that Corona is a pretext for more state control. 80 percent consider the encroachments on fundamental rights to be more serious than the danger posed by the virus. 89 percent share the view that the media report on Corona unilaterally.
When asked why they have not yet been vaccinated, 34 percent said they did not consider the available vaccines to be adequately tested. The following are the reasons for fear of side effects (18 percent), wanting to act at their own discretion and rejecting compulsory vaccination (16 percent) or doubting the safety of the vaccines (15 percent).
29 percent of the non-vaccinated state that their willingness to vaccinate would decrease if the non-vaccinated were met with even stronger social rejection. For 27 percent, this would apply if, instead of the 3G rule, the 2G rule were introduced everywhere in the leisure sector – i.e. access for vaccinated and convalescent people, but not for those tested. 21 percent would reject the vaccination even more if a 3G obligation were introduced in the workplace.
The vaccination rates are particularly low in Saxony (56.5 percent fully vaccinated), Brandenburg (60.3 percent) and Thuringia (60.4 percent). The survey took place from September 29 to October 10, 2021. A total of 3,048 people aged 14 and over were surveyed who had not yet taken advantage of the corona vaccination. (10/28/2021)