BERLIN (AP) – The German government said on Tuesday that it plans to extend the country’s exclusion by three weeks until January 31, combating social contact and restricting people’s movements in the worst affected regions, because it tries to reduce stubbornly high infection rates. and alarming numbers of coronavirus-related deaths.
Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was “absolutely essential” to maintain restrictions, especially in light of a more contagious variant of the virus that originated in England.
“We need to reach a point where we can follow the chains of infection again,” Merkel said after a lengthy video conference with Germany’s 16 state governors. “Otherwise, after a short break, we will continue to return after a short time.”
The chancellor said the restrictions on social contacts would be tightened. People may only meet one person outside their own household.
In a new move, authorities across Germany will allow people in areas with more than 200 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants over seven days to travel just 15 kilometers from their hometown, unless they have a good reason to go further.
“In particular, day trips are not a good reason,” Merkel said. She pointed to a number of recent incidents in which day-trippers wanting to ski or sled have overcome winter resorts, although lifts and other facilities have been closed.
Merkel and the governors plan to discuss again on January 25 what will happen after the end of the month.
On November 2, Germany launched a nationwide partial strike that closed restaurants, bars, leisure and sports facilities. It could not reduce infections, and the current exclusion – which also closed non-essential stores and schools – came into effect on 16 December. It would initially have lasted until January 10th.
Authorities say Germany’s reported numbers for COVID-19 cases have been distorted by lower tests and delayed reporting over the Christmas and New Year. The country’s disease control center says it will only have a reliable picture of what is going on from January 17, Merkel said.
But even according to current figures, Germany is far from its stated goal of getting new confirmed cases below 50 per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days – the maximum level at which officials say contact detection can work properly.
On Tuesday, the infection rate nationwide stood at 134.7 per 100,000, and 944 more deaths were reported to authorities within 24 hours, one of the highest daily death rates yet in a country with a relatively low COVID-19 mortality rate during the first pandemic. phase.
Merkel said the emergence of the new variant in England was ‘one more reason’ to maintain the restrictions. A few cases of the variant have been detected in Germany.
The chancellor defends Germany’s approach to vaccinations following criticism fueled by the perception that Europe has made a slow start and that the European Union was too reluctant to order the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, the only one so far for the bloc were available in the 27 countries.
Germany vaccinated nearly 317,000 people by Tuesday, just over a week into the campaign. It is better than in several other EU countries, but critics have pointed to faster progress in the UK, the United States and Israel.
Merkel said it was “right and important” for the EU rather than ordering individual countries vaccinations for the whole bloc. She said it was “in Germany’s interest” because the country is surrounded by other EU member states and in the middle of the EU trading area which relies on open borders.
“A large number of vaccines in Germany, combined with many that are not vaccinated in our area, will not be good for Germany,” she said. “So we do not want national solo efforts. We believe that the most effective health protection for us can be achieved through a common European procedure. ”
Health Minister Jens Spahn, who has been criticized by the government’s coalition in Germany, has repeatedly said that vaccinations are proceeding as expected and that the slow start is because teams first go to nursing homes to vaccinate the most vulnerable. Merkel said she thought Spahn was doing an excellent job. ”
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