Germany's Health Minister warns Omicron variant might worsen situation

As the COVID cases in Europe continues to grow, Germany's Health Minister, Jens Spahn stated that the fourth wave of the pandemic due to the Omicron variant in Germany might worsen the situation around Christmas, as per a report by the Guardian. On Thursday, the German government and heads of federal states agreed that only those who have been vaccinated or who have recently recovered from COVID should be allowed into restaurants, cinemas, leisure facilities, and many shops and that a general vaccine mandate should be implemented in February.

Berlin stated on Friday that unvaccinated people will be barred from Christmas markets starting next Wednesday. Nightclubs in Berlin may continue to operate, but visitors will not be permitted to dance. According to The Guardian, Spahn stated that they should have demonstrated this uniformity in the handling of unvaccinated persons much sooner. He also said that in the following weeks and months the number of COVID patients on intensive care units will climb above 5,000. The Health Minister also advised reducing the public contact.

4,793 patients with the disease were in intensive care beds across Germany

On Friday morning, 4,793 patients with the disease were in intensive care beds across Germany. Over the course of seven days, Germany's disease control organisation, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), recorded a countrywide incidence rate of 442.1 cases per 100,000 residents, with 390 individuals dying from the sickness in the previous 24 hours, according to The Guardian. States such as Saxony and Thuringia registered so many new cases to the point where health officials were struggling to record them accurately as laboratory capacity neared its maximum.

Lothar Wieler, president of the RKI stated that the country should be prepared for the likelihood that the omicron variant will cause even more cases in a shorter period of time than the delta variant, according to VOA. To prevent the health system from collapsing, he said the COVID restrictions must be applied nationally.

Germany listed five countries as "high-risk areas"

Recently, Germany listed five countries as "high-risk areas," implementing tighter entry requirements for the unvaccinated visitors from those countries, which are Switzerland, Poland, Lichtenstein, Jordon and Mauritius, according to Schengenvisainfo. Quarantine is also mandatory for visitors from high-risk locations. Those who provide proof of recovery or vaccination against the virus, on the other hand, are exempt from the ban and those who enter the nation with test results can only leave quarantine on the fifth day if they test negative for COVID-19 again.

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