MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Germany ponders return to lockdowns amid 4th wave of COVID-19

“If we don't take action now, this fourth wave will bring a lot of suffering again,” Wieler said

German health authorities were said Friday to be entertaining the thought of returning to quarantine as a possible response to the growing number of COVID-19 cases.

The country has reached a record number of daily infections with an overload in its hospitals.

Over 16 million citizens over 12 years of age have yet to be vaccinated and the third dose for the population at risk is taking longer than usual, it was reported.

After Health Minister Jens Spahn spoke of “the pandemic of the unvaccinated,” health ministers of the 16 German states have convened to study the situation and analyze whether they should return to the restrictions.

Bavaria, for instance, has once again made the use of face masks mandatory at schools.

Chancellor Angela Merkel has said she favoured the so-called “2G rule,” which only admits vaccinated people in hotels or businesses.

Lothar Wieler of the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has warned that Germany has 66.9% of the population unvaccinated, including 3.2 million adults over 60. “If we don't take action now, this fourth wave will bring a lot of suffering again. Many people will become seriously ill and die, and the health system will once again face a heavy burden,“ he said.

Wieler also highlighted the 165 deaths reported by the RKI Thursday amid an increasing rate of hospitalizations.

Meanwhile, neighbouring Austria Friday issued a ban on unvaccinated people from entering cafes, restaurants and beauty salons, as the infection count nears the record of a year ago and the government struggles to convince people to get immunized.

Almost 64% of Austria's population is fully vaccinated against Covid-19, in line with the European Union average, but still one of the lowest rates in Western Europe. Many Austrians are sceptical of vaccines, as is the far-right Freedom Party, the third-largest in parliament.

The number of new daily infections has grown and reached 9,388 Friday, a mark close to the 9,586 recorded a year ago. The government said it expected a new record in the coming days.

”The evolution is exceptional and the occupation of intensive care beds is increasing much faster than we expected,” said Conservative Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg.

He also explained the new measures will become effective Monday, Nov. 8, including banning the entry of unvaccinated people into hotels and events attended by more than 25 guests as well as ski lifts.

There will be a transition period of four weeks, during which proof of the first dose and a PCR test will be enough. After that, only those who have completed the immunization cycle or who have recovered from a recent coronavirus infection shall be allowed in.