Shortly before the extensive easing of the corona measures, the number of infections in the Munich district rose sharply. This also applies to the care facilities, where, as of Wednesday, 127 residents and 106 employees are positive. A week ago there were 85 residents and 77 employees. Since the facility-related vaccination requirement came into force on Wednesday, retirement homes and other healthcare facilities have reported 130 unvaccinated employees to the district office, who will shortly receive a letter from the authority. District Administrator Christoph Göbel (CSU) warned on Thursday at the weekly press conference on the Corona situation that the number of infections would continue to rise and that a difficult “Corona fall” would occur. In the short term, special protective measures for refugees from Ukraine with a low vaccination status could become necessary if large emergency shelters were occupied by older people.
The district office is under pressure from many sides. Together with the pandemic, a refugee crisis has to be managed, which also raises many questions from a health perspective. In addition, the Bundeswehr soldiers are no longer available, which the authority was recently able to use to provide support because the troops are having to set new priorities due to the threat from Russia. The district office can hardly keep up with the data collection in terms of personnel, which is why, according to Göbel, retrospective corrections of the incidences upwards will continue to be on the agenda. Wednesday’s reading was raised to 1920.9 on Thursday. For the weekend, Göbel expects an incidence beyond the 2000 mark. The number of hospital admissions is also increasing.
The vaccination rate for refugees from Ukraine is only 30 percent
Despite the impending abolition of most of the corona protection rules on April 2nd, Göbel did not raise the alarm. He said rising temperatures would mitigate the risk of an acute health crisis. Only one kindergarten group in the district is currently in quarantine and no school class. Göbel’s concern applies to the coming autumn and winter, when a more dangerous virus variant may come into play. “If we had a vaccination requirement, I would be totally relaxed,” said Göbel, who wants to hold on to special vaccination campaigns despite the recent low response. Sometimes these do have an effect. In Grasbrunn, only one child was vaccinated on Children’s Vaccination Day on March 11th, while there were at least 50 vaccinations on an action day in Gräfelfing on March 14th. There will be more campaigns tailored to refugees, for which interpreters will also be called in. The vaccination rate among the refugees is only around 30 percent, but there is still a manageable number of infections there.
Göbel supports a general obligation to vaccinate. His authority is now gradually implementing the obligation for personnel working in the medical field. According to Jörg Spennemann, head of the health department in the district office, the 130 employees who have so far refused vaccination are written to and informed about an offer of advice. You would first be given deadlines, if these are not met, follow the regulatory procedure with fines up to and including a ban on entering the facility. That could drag on until July. Spennemann also expects a certain number of unreported cases for mobile services. The inactivated vaccine Novavax, which it was hoped would be well received in the health sector, has so far been in little demand in the district. 196 doses were vaccinated, 110 doses given to doctors. The opening hours of the vaccination centers will be reduced to 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. due to the significant drop in demand.
Göbel continues to advise wearing FFP2 masks, precisely because many protective measures are no longer being taken. These protect extremely effectively and have a stronger effect than lockdowns, according to the district administrator, who refers to a recent study. The wearing of masks for employees and visitors will therefore be retained in the district office. The head of the health department, Gerhard Schmid, recommends continuing to ventilate closed rooms. “Both together” protect against contagion.