Pandemic
Lauterbach and Drosten warn of Corona “reinterpretations”
Karl Lauterbach (SPD), Federal Minister of Health, takes a critical look back at some of the corona measures. photo
© Kay Nietfeld/dpa
With some distance, the Minister of Health also looks back critically at some Corona measures. But Karl Lauterbach also warns against “reinterpretations” by downplaying the pandemic.
Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach has warned against “reinterpretations” when evaluating corona protection measures. Germany is now technically much better equipped for possible next pandemics, the SPD politician made clear in the “Spiegel”. “But we are less prepared in terms of communication and politics than we were before Corona because of all the trivializers and “lateral thinkers”. It is therefore all the more important that the scientific findings are not subsequently reinterpreted.”
Lauterbach said a “twisting of facts” caused significant damage in the pandemic. “Without the disinformation campaign by some media, parties, “lateral thinkers” and scientists, we would have had a significantly higher vaccination rate among the elderly. Fewer deaths were possible.”
The Berlin virologist Christian Drosten told the “Spiegel” in the double interview with Lauterbach that it was now about “a tangible reinterpretation”. He referred to “one of the popular narratives” that it never made sense to close schools. “I always think to myself: How derogatory is that towards the many people who tried from the start to inform themselves and act responsibly? Who said: I’ll stay at home with my child, I’ll close my pub?” It was the same with the discussion about whether the mask requirement was necessary. “Of course it was necessary.”
“These were excesses”
Lauterbach had previously criticized mistakes in fighting the pandemic again. “What was nonsense, if I can speak so freely, these rules are out there,” he said on the ZDF program “Markus Lanz” on Thursday evening. He was referring, for example, to the temporary ban on going jogging without a mask. “Of course it’s clear, there were excesses,” said Lauterbach, who has been Minister of Health since December 2021. The states would have massively overstimulated, especially Bavaria. The long daycare and school closures were also a mistake.
Nevertheless, Lauterbach’s balance sheet was positive overall almost three years after the beginning of the pandemic. “We got through fine.” Thanks to the cautious approach, mortality in Germany was lower than in other countries, despite the old population. So far, around 180,000 people in Germany have died as a result of a corona infection. “That’s not a bad number, but we would have done even better if it hadn’t been for this constant politicization of the measures,” he said.
Kubicki demands resignation
The Bavarian Health Minister Klaus Holetschek (CSU) rejected Lauterbach’s criticism. Bavaria’s Corona course was consistent, but new developments were reacted to with a sense of proportion and freedom was made possible. “Lauterbach should actually know that Bavaria was a role model in important areas,” said Holetschek on Friday. The country started testing at schools early on in order to be able to guarantee face-to-face teaching.
FDP Vice Wolfgang Kubicki even suggests Lauterbach resign. “Nobody would accuse Karl Lauterbach of an honorable resignation,” Kubicki wrote on his Facebook page on Friday. In the entry, the Deputy President of the Bundestag sharply criticized the Corona policy of the past three years. “Karl Lauterbach was one of those who helped to exclude critical scientific voices, to stir up panic himself and to shift the borders of the constitutional state,” Kubicki continues. “If he thinks he can now go about his business with a ‘spontaneous mentality’, that would be fatal for the democratic, constitutional and social process of coming to terms with things.”
SPD: Kubicki with “kowtow to lateral thinkers and corona deniers”
In turn, there was criticism from the SPD: The deputy leader of the parliamentary group, Dagmar Schmidt, called it “absolutely unacceptable” to ask a minister from his own coalition to resign because he “named mistakes in the serious retrospective of the pandemic” and drew consequences. “Our patience with Mr. Kubicki’s erroneous comments on corona policy and the fight against the pandemic was already under strain,” said Schmidt of the German Press Agency in Berlin. As early as December, Kubicki had said that he did not expect Lauterbach to remain in office for the entire legislative period.
Lauterbach is doing everything “to implement structural problems in the health system and improvements, especially in the care of children and young people,” said the SPD MP. The health department is currently working on a comprehensive hospital reform. “I expect a clear word from Mr. Lindner and thus a clear signal from the FDP that they still see themselves in a position to place Mr. Kubicki in joint government responsibility,” said Schmidt.
“Such a kowtow to the lateral thinkers and corona deniers shortly before the Berlin election is hardly a coincidence,” said the politician to Kubicki. At the same time, Schmidt said that the coalition is taking a serious and serious look at the pandemic at the technical level. “In the end we will see that Germany has come through the pandemic comparatively well.”