Mr. Gassen, when will the coronavirus pandemic be over?
Medical official Andreas Gassen "I anticipate that corona will be over in the spring of 2022"
Interview | Bonn · The head of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, Andreas Gassen, is optimistic that Covid could come to an end in the not too distant future. The Düsseldorf physician makes his case very clearly.
02.09.2021
, 13:51 Uhr
Gassen: I anticipate that corona will be over in the spring of 2022. That's also what renowned scientists are saying. By then, the vaccination rate will be somewhat higher, but above all, the number of people with antibodies will increase. Restrictions will then probably become completely unnecessary.
And until then, we will be hit by a strong fourth wave?
Gassen: The number of infections will rise again in the fall. They have already risen, driven mainly by people returning from travel from some countries. Nevertheless, I don't see any great concern among doctors that the healthcare system could collapse. The number of serious illnesses will remain well below the level of last winter. So a little relaxation would be in order without becoming reckless. The idea of only allowing vaccinated, recovered or tested people to travel on trains would theoretically mean greater safety, but seems to me to be impracticable and legally dubious.
Other countries have sharply scaled back their pandemic-related restrictions, some even declaring a Freedom Day. Should Germany follow suit?
Gassen: In comparable countries such as Great Britain, the Netherlands or Denmark, there are actually few or no restrictions. And hospitals there are not overflowing either. That's why I'm in favor of Germany not having any more sweeping restrictions for citizens in the near future. Instead, people should decide for themselves what they want to do voluntarily for self-protection, for example, whether or not they want to wear a mask. The federal and state governments would do well not to make their decisions for months and months in a reactionary emergency mode. After one and a half years of the pandemic, we are already smarter: the zero-covid or non-covid strategies have predictably failed worldwide. We need a more pragmatic approach.
What does that mean for schools, for example?
Gassen: I am very critical of a practice in the future of sending entire classes or grades into quarantine for several days following positive lollipop tests if a possible positive case occurs in the group. The damage that children have been shown to suffer from alternate teaching and long quarantine periods is probably far greater than the possible risks from long-term Covid symptoms, which have so far only occurred in isolated cases, and whose relevance has yet to be scientifically investigated. Long-term Covid is not a mass phenomenon with 14 million people under 18 years of age and around 2,800 unconfirmed suspected cases. In the future, contact tracing by public health authorities should be limited to risk groups such as elderly people in nursing homes and their relatives.
Precisely because so little is known about long-term effects of Covid, experts such as SPD politician Karl Lauterbach are urging caution, especially in schools.
Gassen: It is true and not surprising that the incidence of infection is particularly high in the younger age groups. And, shockingly, there are still no viable protection concepts after all this time. It is also completely absurd that there are not enough air purifiers for schools nationwide and children have to struggle around with a mask in class, and then don't wear one the rest of the day, of course, even if they are playing with the same children. We know clearly that young people very, very rarely become seriously ill with corona. That's why there should be no more alternating classes.
Do you support compulsory vaccination - even if only for certain occupational groups?
Gassen: No. I reject compulsory vaccination, even for individual occupational groups. We need to achieve trust in vaccination and not enforce it with coercion. Nevertheless, vaccination can still become more readily available and less bureaucratic. Most primary care practices have already vaccinated their patients who were willing to get a vaccine. Physician offices remain the best place for vaccination in any case. And yet, promotions like vaccinating on city trams are also for sure a possible idea to reach more people. The Covid vaccination is safe, everyone can see that by now. And anyone who doesn't want to understand this as an adult has to reckon with an infection and serious illness. It is as simple as that.
Orig. text: Jan Drebes
Translation: ck
