New regulations from 16 January Here are the new Coronavirus prevention regulations for NRW

Service · The NRW state government on Sunday once again changed the measures to curb the Coronavirus. The changes mean advantages to people with a booster shot. And there are new quarantine rules. Here’s an overview.

The 2G rule will apply across the board in the NRW leisure and culture sector from this Wednesday. Photo: dpa/Oliver Berg

Foto: dpa/Oliver Berg

In view of rising Corona infection numbers as well as the rapidly spreading Omicron variant, the state of North Rhine-Westphalia has changed the Coronavirus protection regulations again as of Sunday, 16 January. The measures were last tightened three days earlier. Among other things, new quarantine regulations apply. The 2G-plus rule has been relaxed in some places. Now, not only people who have had their booster shot are exempt from testing obligations for restaurants, pubs, indoor swimming pools and gyms. The losers of the new Coronavirus protection regulations are people who were given the Johnson & Johnson vaccine.  We present an overview of the most important changes in the Coronavirus prevention regulations for NRW.

NRW health minister Karl-Josef Laumann put it simply: “In NRW we now have 2G in the entire leisure sector, and we will stay at 2G”, he said at a press conference on the changes on Tuesday. In other words, only fully vaccinated or recently recovered people have access to leisure facilities. "Where mask-wearing is not possible in leisure facilities, the 2G-plus regulation applies,” he added. This means that fully vaccinated and recently recovered persons must additionally prove a negative Coronavirus test.

  • ADVANTAGE FOR BOOSTERED PEOPLE: People with basic vaccinations and those who have recently recovered are only allowed to enter many areas in NRW if they also present a negative test (2G-plus rule). In contrast, people who have already received a Coronavirus booster vaccination are exempt from the additional testing requirement in many areas. This includes recreational sports facilities or in restaurants. Also exempt from additional testing are vaccinated persons who have recently recovered. Persons who have been vaccinated twice are exempt for the period of 15 to 90 days after their second shot. Even unvaccinated persons who have recently recovered are allowed to go to the gym, swimming pool, restaurants and pubs without testing for a certain period of time, namely from the 28th day of a positive PCR test until the 90th day. But only persons who have received three Coronavirus shots, regardless of the active ingredient, will be considered to have had their booster shot. This includes anyone who received the single vaccine from Johnson & Johnson. (See also: When do people with the Johnson & Johnson jab count as boostered?)
  • TIGHTER ACCESS RESTRICTIONS: The 2G-plus rule has been extended in the new Coronavirus Protection Ordinance, which is valid until 9 February. Immunised persons already have to provide an up-to-date test to take part in indoor sports, go to swimming pools or wellness facilities. The rule has now been extended to restaurants. Anyone who is not fully vaccinated including a booster shot will have to provide a negative rapid test certificate that is no older than 24 hours. Picking up food and beverages is allowed without a certificate. In leisure facilities, however, where it is possible to wear a protective face mask, the 2G rule remains in force.
  • 2G-PLUS RULE - WHAT ABOUT CHILDREN? Children up to and including the age of 15 are treated the same as immunised persons. According to the NRW Ministry of Health, schoolchildren are treated the same as people who have provided a negative test because they take part in mandatory school tests. Children below school age are exempt from testing and are therefore allowed access to facilities where the 2G-plus rule applies
  • CORONAVIRUS TESTS ON SITE: Since last Thursday, supervised self-tests have been sufficient as official test proof in many places in NRW. In places where a test is one of the access requirements (3G or 2G-plus), a self-test can be carried out under supervision instead of having to present an official test certificate. This applies, for example, when entering a gym, where the reception staff can supervise the test, or when exercising under the supervision of a trainer, the NRW Ministry of Health explained. However, the supervisors cannot issue test certificates that also entitle the person to enter other places. Only official testing centres can do that. Whether and in what form tests are offered on site is decided by the respective operator.
  • SPECTATORS IN SPORTS ARENAS: Since Thursday, sports arenas in NRW may again be filled with spectators, but for the time being only with a maximum of 750 people. The same upper limit also applies to museums, theatres and the like.
  • MANDATORY FACE MASKS: There will be fewer exemptions from the mandatory wearing of a face mask, and the obligation to wear medical masks will be extended. This concerns in particular the reintroduction of mandatory mask wearing in outdoor queues and at events and gatherings, where there is no 3G regulation (vaccinated, newly recovered or tested) or 2G regulation (vaccinated or newly recovered). The requirement to wear a mask indoors where several people are gathered continues. Masks can be dispensed with, among other things, in restaurants when seated or "for the necessary consumption of food and drink".
  • CLUBS AND DISCOS REMAIN CLOSED: Clubs, discos and similar establishments must remain closed under the updated NRW Corona Protection Ordinance. The "operation of swinger clubs as well as similar offerings" is now also explicitly prohibited.
  • QUARANTINE RULES IN NRW: With immediate effect, there is a shortened isolation and quarantine period for persons infected with Coronavirus and their contacts. Anyone infected with Coronavirus must be quarantined for ten days, but this can be shortened to seven days with a negative official rapid test or PCR test. The prerequisite is that the person is symptom-free for at least 48 hours beforehand. Contact persons living in the same household as an infected person must also be quarantined for ten days. The quarantine can be shortened to seven days if they are symptom-free and can provide a negative official rapid test or PCR test. For children in day-care and schoolchildren, the quarantine period can even be reduced to five days with a negative test. Contact persons who have already received a booster vaccination against Coronavirus no longer need to be quarantined at all. Also vaccinated and recently recovered persons, persons who have been vaccinated twice up to the 90th day after the second vaccination, as well as recovered persons up to the 90th day after the positive test are exempt from quarantine.

Originaltext: Sandra Liermann

Translation: Jean Lennox