Merkel seeks another four weeks of lock-in in Germany

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Chancellor Angela Merkel has suggested that German lock-in restrictions remain in effect for another four weeks after the Covid-19 cases rose further than the government’s action to prevent overcrowding in healthcare

The plan would extend the existing curbs until April 18, according to a chancery concept seen by Bloomberg. Merkel and regional government leaders will discuss the proposals on Monday during talks on how to proceed with the closure amid an upward infection curve in Europe’s largest economy.

As much of Europe is heading for the Easter holidays at the end of March, the concept suggests that mandatory quarantines and Covid tests for travelers returning to Germany indicate that officials have not yet agreed on this.

For areas hit very hard in Germany, there are other possible curbs where a final decision is pending, night bells until 5am and closing of schools and childcare if teachers and pupils cannot test twice a week.

Business in Germany increases again to authorities began easing restrictions at the end of February and set out a plan to gradually loosen curbs. The plan depends on the infection trend and increases the importance for Monday’s talks after the number of cases has increased over the past few days.

The national infection rate of seven days per 100,000 people rose to 103.9, the Robert Koch Institute of Health Sunday reported, the highest since January 26th. According to data from Johns Hopkins University, German cases increased by 24,034 in the 24 hours to Sunday, compared to 10,568 a week earlier.

The emerging pandemic has led some health experts to warn that hospitals’ intensive care units may run the risk of being overwhelmed within weeks if the exponential growth in cases continues. On Sunday, the number of Covid-19 patients in intensive care rose to 3,056, the highest in nearly a month.

Germany uses the appearance as a measure of the distribution of Covid-19. If it exceeds 100 in a certain region for three consecutive days, authorities can tighten the closure measures again. The threshold was exceeded in 9 out of 16 federal states as of Sunday, prompting some regional leaders to call for nationwide measures for hotspots for viruses.

“We have a tool that works: the emergency brake. It must be applied consistently throughout Germany, ”Bavarian Prime Minister Markus Soeder said in an interview with the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung. “Otherwise it will be a toothless tiger.”

Regional leaders expressed differing views on what to do before the upcoming Easter holiday at the request of the Newspaper world on Sunday. Reiner Haseloff, premier of Saxony-Anhalt, said people should be able to holiday within the boundaries of their own region. Thuringian Prime Minister Bodo Ramelow has pleaded with people to avoid all holidays.

“Whoever believes that in the current phase of the pandemic you can open entire holiday regions without testing, does not know what is going on,” Ramelow told the newspaper.

Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union suffered major damage two regional elections this month. The staggering pace of vaccine vaccination, irritation with restrictions that have been in place since last year and a growing scandal over allegations that some conservative lawmakers benefiting from the pandemic have all claimed its popularity.

Nevertheless, the chancellor prepared the public for unpopular decisions at Monday’s meeting.

“We are seeing exponential growth” in cases, she said on Friday. “Unfortunately we will have to use the emergency brake.”

(Updates with the Chancellery concept proposing to close by April 18th.)