Which corona protective measures have achieved how much? More than two years after the beginning of the pandemic, the German Committee of Experts set up by the Federal Government and the Bundestag has not come to a clear conclusion on this question. Lockdowns, for example, are “useful” at the beginning of a pandemic to curb the spread of the pathogen; However, this effect is lost quickly, according to the final report, which the committee will present at noon and that of the Süddeutsche Zeitung present. Whether school closures are effective is an open question. The initially high benefit of 2G and 3G access rules is clearly diminishing over time with the current virus variants. The experts also do not generally recommend a mask requirement – but masks are very effective indoors.
The 18-strong committee was set up to evaluate the corona measures and thus to provide politicians with recommendations for the future. This is important not least because the previous corona protection measures expire at the end of September. The FDP in particular is slowing down in the Berlin traffic light coalition and has always insisted on waiting for the recommendations of the expert commission before talking about further corona measures. But their work was controversial, the well-known virologist Christian Drosten from the Berlin Charité, for example, left the group in April.
The summary of the study does not result in a clear confirmation of the German corona policy, which has resulted in severe restrictions on fundamental rights for a long time, nor in a subsequent rejection. “Despite biological plausibility and numerous studies, the exact effectiveness of school closures in containing the spread of the coronavirus is still open,” says the report, for example – also because the effect of individual measures cannot be checked here.
Regarding the access restrictions for non-vaccinated people, for example to events or in shops, the experts write: The effect of 2-G or 3-G measures is high in the first few weeks after the booster vaccination or recovery. “However, protection against infection decreases significantly over time.” They therefore recommend that if politicians are once again forced to impose such access restrictions, they should definitely introduce mandatory testing for the current variants and vaccines, including those who have been vaccinated.
The experts also make a differentiated assessment of the requirement to wear a mask: it could be “an effective tool in combating the pandemic”. It is crucial, however, that masks are worn correctly – and that must be emphasized much more clearly in public than has been done in the past. “However, an ill-fitting and not tight-fitting mask has reduced to no effect.” One cannot say whether the protective effect of FFP2 masks is really better than medical masks (surgical masks).
In the opinion of the experts, however, the final report has only limited informative value. They write that there is a lack of data and interdisciplinary accompanying research to be able to precisely examine the effect of individual regulations. In addition, the Commission had too little time and was given too few staff to be able to carry out a “comprehensive evaluation”.