41 people are currently in intensive care units, 33 of whom need to be ventilated. So far, 222 people have died in connection with Covid-19. 11,295 people are considered to have recovered.

In Bonn, 103,076 people have received primary vaccination so far, and 27,985 secondary vaccinations have also been administered.

The incidence value in the Rhein-Sieg district dropped to 126.8, according to the North Rhine-Westphalia State Center for Health. The previous day, the incidence was 140.8. According to the report, 98 new cases were reported, bringing the total number of reported cases to 20,810. So far, 467 people have died in connection with Covid-19 in the district.

The incidence value in Cologne dropped to 230.7 on Wednesday. On Tuesday, it had been 240. 4186 people are currently infected with the coronavirus in the cathedral city, announced by the city on Wednesday. 396 people are therefore in hospital inpatient quarantine, including 136 in intensive care units.

From Friday, April 30, people with a previous illness according to paragraph 3 of the Corona Vaccination Ordinance will receive their vaccination appointment through the Kassenärztliche Vereinigung Nordrhein online at www.116117.de and by phone at 0800/116 117 01.

Vaccination centers in NRW continue to be busy

Even three weeks after the start of Corona vaccination in general practitioners' practices, the vaccination centers continue to be very busy. For months it happens every now and again that people don’t show up for their vaccination appointments, according to the Kassenärztliche Vereinigung North Rhine on Wednesday. On average, this affects about five percent of the appointment bookings, there are no particular local focal points.

"According to our information, all centers in North Rhine are currently running at full capacity," a spokesperson reported. For the most part, he said, the vaccination centers have drawn up lists on which alternative eligible persons are noted as "latecomers." These could then be notified at short notice in the event of remaining vaccine doses. There have been isolated reports of cancelled appointments, especially since doctors' offices have also been involved in immunization against the corona virus.

In light of the immense corona costs, more than 100 artists, scientists and civil society organizations are calling for greater taxation of wealth and more distributive justice. They propose higher taxes on inheritances, gifts and business assets, a one-time wealth tax, an EU-wide minimum tax rate for companies, and a higher income tax for particularly high incomes, according to an open letter addressed to the German government by the alliance "Wer hat, der gibt."

The alliance also warns against cuts in public and social spending. It calls for "a long-term redistribution of wealth from top to bottom." Among the first signatories are the writer Christoph Hein, the singer Annette Humpe and the publicist and Green politician Marina Weisband. Poverty researcher Christoph Butterwegge, right-wing extremism researcher Matthias Quent and the managing director of the Paritätischer Wohlfahrtsverband, Ulrich Schneider, are also among them. In addition, organizations such as Attac, Oxfam and some local groups of Fridays for Future have signed.

In Germany, the 45 richest households own more than the poorer half of the entire population, the letter says. The very large socioeconomic inequality has worsened during the crisis, it said: "The hyper-rich have become even wealthier, while the financial and social hardship of financially weak groups is likely to increase."

(Original text: ga/dpa; Translation: Mareike Graepel)