Several federal states are lifting the obligation to isolate in the event of corona disease.
(Photo: dpa)
Munich In the south and in the very north of Germany, people infected with corona will soon no longer have to isolate themselves automatically. Bavaria, Baden-Württemberg, Hesse and Schleswig-Holstein want to abolish the applicable five-day quarantine obligation, as the health ministers of the four federal states announced in a joint statement on Friday.
Anyone who has a positive corona test but does not feel sick should in future only have to wear a mask when they are not at home to protect others from being infected with the virus. In Bavaria, the new regulation should apply from Wednesday (November 16th).
Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) thinks nothing of it. “This comes at an inopportune time and does not find the approval of the federal government,” he said on the sidelines of a session of the Bundestag in Berlin. “It would of course be annoying to go it alone, if that were to happen.”
He fears the number of cases will increase. “We would then have an even stronger wave than we already had to fear, and we are on the eve of a more contagious variant,” said Lauterbach. However, the coalition does not have a handle on this.
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Bavaria’s Health Minister Klaus Holetschek (CSU), on the other hand, is relying on citizens to take greater responsibility. It is not about letting the infection process run free.
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However, the federal government has refused a uniform regulation on quarantine. “That’s why we are now taking this important step towards dealing with Corona responsibly in view of the changed pandemic situation.” According to Holetschek, experts considered the decision to be justifiable.
“New phase” of the corona pandemic
Among other things, the ministry quoted the Munich infectiologist Clemens Wendtner, who had treated the first Covid 19 patient in Germany at the beginning of 2020: “In view of the low severity of the disease with predominantly mild courses under the omicron variant and a meanwhile high basic immunity in the population, it is the right step to lift the obligation to isolate now.” According to the four ministers, this is also shown by the positive experiences in neighboring Austria, where the obligation to wear masks has replaced quarantine since the summer.
Baden-Württemberg’s Health Minister Manne Luche (Greens) spoke of a “new phase” in dealing with the pandemic: “It’s time to give people more personal responsibility again. The same applies as before: if you are sick, stay at home.”
To protect vulnerable groups, according to the recommendations of the four countries, people infected with corona should not be allowed to visit clinics, retirement homes or other medical facilities or mass accommodation – let alone work there. An obligation to work from home, a waiver of visiting restaurants or public events are also possible.
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