Despite rising infection figures, the German government believes that Germany is well prepared for the coming months with the planned new Corona regulations. It is planned that beyond the beginning of spring on 20 March, mask and test obligations can continue to take effect in certain areas as basic measures, as Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) and Justice Minister Marco Buschmann (FDP) explained in Berlin on Wednesday. In hotspots with a particularly high level of pollution, more comprehensive measures should be able to take effect. These could be neighbourhoods, cities, regions or an entire federal state, Lauterbach said.

"I still have hope that we can control the increase," Lauterbach said. According to the Robert Koch Institute, the nationwide seven-day incidence rose for the seventh day in a row, to 1319 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants per week. Buschmann expressed the expectation "that we can control the situation well with this set of instruments".

In concrete terms, it is planned that the Länder can continue to impose mandatory mask use in hospitals and nursing homes as well as in public transport. It should also be possible to order mandatory testing in such facilities for particularly vulnerable groups as well as in schools. In general, according to Buschmann, in regions with normal situations, "we are returning to normal life as far as possible there, with the exception of particularly dangerous settings." In hotspots, further mask obligations, distance bans, hygiene concepts as well as obligatory vaccination, convalescence or test certificates should be able to be added. Lauterbach said that the regulations should be valid until 23 September, so that a follow-up law could be passed before the beginning of an expected autumn wave.

The incidence of Corona in Bonn has continued to rise and on Wednesday almost reached the previous high of 2 February at 1675.8. Those aged 20 to 29 are the most affected, with an incidence of 2915. The rise in infection figures began with the carnival days, figures from the State Health Centre show. According to the city administration, 541 schoolchildren and 254 day-care centre children have been infected, in addition to 237 infected kindergarten teachers and teaching staff.

 The press office reports outbreaks with at least three related cases in 39 schools, as well as in the senior citizen facilities Evangelisches Seniorenzentrum Theresienau, Demenzzentrum Haus Mühlenbach, Seniorenzentrum Haus Mühlenbach, Wilhelmine-Lübke-Haus, Residenz Ambiente, Albertus-Magnus-Haus, Johanniterhaus. There are also outbreaks in clinics: Waldkrankenhaus, Rehazentrum Godeshöhe, Helios-Klinikum and Universitätsklinikum.

 So far rather few registrations for Novavax vaccination in Bonn

The Novavax vaccine has not yet led to a boost in the vaccination campaign in Bonn. So far, about 830 people have registered for vaccination with the so-called inactivated vaccine, of which about 680 people from areas of facility-based mandatory vaccination and 43 people with a proven intolerance to an mRNA vaccine.

 In the week from 1 to 8 March, a total of 166 first, 550 second and 1,452 third vaccinations were administered in Bonn. This brings the total number of vaccinations to 286,189 first, 290,516 second and 231,522 third vaccinations. At the vaccination centre in Bad Godesberg, 8,156 first vaccinations and 3,594 second vaccinations have been administered to children between the ages of five and eleven.

Original text: ga/dpa

Translation: Mareike Graepel