Live blog
As of: November 8th, 2021 1:12 a.m.
The German Teachers Association warns of a loss of control over the pandemic in schools. The SPD, Greens and FDP want to present a joint bill to combat the pandemic today. All developments in the live blog.
- Teachers’ Association warns of loss of control
- Traffic light parties present Corona draft law
- USA opens borders to vaccinated people
1:12 am
Vaccinated foreigners are allowed to enter the USA again
More than one and a half years after a far-reaching entry ban was imposed, vaccinated Europeans are allowed to fly to the USA again from today. Before departure, travelers must prove that they are fully vaccinated against the coronavirus. You must also present a negative corona test that is no more than three days old at the airport and leave your data for possible contact follow-up.
In March 2020, under President Donald Trump, the US government imposed entry bans on travelers from the Schengen area, Great Britain and Ireland in view of the corona pandemic. Trump’s successor Joe Biden stuck to these so-called travel bans, which was increasingly criticized in Germany and other EU countries. In September, the White House announced that it would reopen the borders to vaccinated travelers in November. This also ends the US corona entry bans for China, India, Brazil, South Africa and Iran.
01:00 a.m.
Head of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians: Anyone who has not been vaccinated will be infected in winter
According to the Chairman of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians (KBV), Andreas Gassen, almost all non-vaccinated people will be infected with Corona in autumn and winter. “We will see that in the next few months everyone who is not vaccinated will most likely become infected,” Gassen told the broadcaster Bild TV. Measures other than vaccination would not offer any protection against the coronavirus. “It is a deceptive security when people think that because they are not going to the carnival or are still wearing a mask in the subway, they are protected from being infected with corona,” said Gassen. “We will only have peace in the sense of an epidemic situation when the majority of the population has actually been vaccinated or recovered,” said the KBV boss. Gassen gave the quota of non-vaccinated persons at 30 percent.
00:57 am
Teachers’ Association warns of loss of control in schools
In view of the rising number of corona infections, the German Teachers Association warns of a loss of control over the pandemic in schools. “There are terrifying incidences in the group of children and adolescents,” said association president Heinz-Peter Meidinger to the “RedaktionsNetzwerk Deutschland” (Monday): “The multitude of corona outbreaks in schools must cause us great concern.” Losing control over it is immense. Meidinger pleaded for continuing to adhere to the mask requirement: “I consider it highly questionable if federal states, contrary to the recommendation of the Robert Koch Institute, say goodbye to the requirement of wearing masks in schools, although the infections in school children are going through the roof.” Studies have shown, that the mask requirement makes schools safer. Those responsible in the countries should not put their own political wishes above scientific expertise, warned the association president.
00:57 am
Traffic light parties present Corona draft law
The SPD, Greens and FDP want to present a joint bill to combat the pandemic today. “On Monday we will present a bill to parliament to adequately and decisively combat Corona,” says the deputy chairman of the SPD parliamentary group, Dirk Wiese, according to a preliminary report in the “Welt”. The draft should be discussed in the Bundestag this week and come into force before the planned expiry of the epidemic emergency on November 25th.