However, it is unclear whether the end of the measures is nearing the end of the corona emergency. An overview of the most important questions.
The law has to be renewed every three months by the Bundestag. “This will end a state of emergency that has existed since March 28, 2020 and therefore for almost 19 months.”
However, Spahn also said that measures such as distance and hygiene rules and the 3G rule should continue to exist. It gives only vaccinated, convalescent and tested people access to facilities, shops and restaurants. In some federal states, even those who have been tested are exempt from this (2G).
Who decides on the “epidemic situation”
The Bundestag first determined the “epidemic situation of national scope” in March 2020 at the beginning of the pandemic and then repeatedly extended it, most recently at the end of August for three months. It will expire if it is not extended by Parliament.
What the “epidemic situation” regulates
The “epidemic situation” gives federal and state governments the power to issue regulations on corona measures or the procurement of vaccines. This is recorded in the Infection Protection Act, which was changed several times in the wake of the pandemic.
According to this, an “epidemic situation of national scope” exists “if there is a serious risk to public health in the entire Federal Republic of Germany”. The Infection Protection Act also specifies specific measures that can be taken “to prevent the spread of the coronavirus disease-2019” for the duration of such a situation being determined.
Below is a long list of the measures that have shaped everyday life in the last two years: distance requirements, mask requirement, obligation to present proof of vaccination, recovery or test, contact restrictions, obligation to hygiene concepts, restriction of leisure events, sport.
Whoever speaks out in favor of the end of the “epidemic situation”
Spahn’s plans are largely undisputed among the possible traffic light coalitionaries, the Greens and the FDP. During the debate in August, the two groups called for the epidemic to come to an end. “The prerequisites for the epidemic situation of national scope have long ceased to exist,” said FDP parliamentary deputy Michael Theurer of the Handelsblatt.
The SPD, on the other hand, was cautious. “Jens Spahn has expressed his personal view of things, which is particularly heard because he is still the executive Federal Minister of Health,” said the party’s health expert, Bärbel Bas, to the Handelsblatt – and pointed out that the decision rests with the Bundestag.
However, it is not enough to just look at the vaccination rate. “It’s not for nothing that we have written other parameters, such as the incidence of hospitalization, into the law,” she said. “The legal options for certain protective measures in the countries, such as the wearing of masks, should be retained in any case.”
The chairman of the German Hospital Society, Gerald Gaß, supported Spahn’s plan. In view of the high vaccination rate in Germany, it should no longer be necessary for the federal government to adopt measures to control pandemics beyond the state competencies, he told the editorial network Germany. “I also no longer expect the same high number of Covid patients in hospitals for autumn and winter as in the past.”
What consequences the end of the “epidemic situation” would have
What Spahn’s statements mean in concrete terms is still open. For example, if the “epidemic situation” came to an end, there would also be a kind of “Freedom Day” with the end of all restrictions.
Because the federal states themselves are basically responsible for corona measures. They set distance, event and mask rules in their own regulations, update them regularly and so far have not indicated that they want to forego all measures.
The fact is: a large part of the corona measures have already been lifted. In the interior there are still access rules for vaccinated, convalescent and tested people (3G) with the option for 2G only for vaccinated and convalescent people – as well as hygiene rules for keeping your distance and wearing masks, especially on buses and trains.
However, it is questionable how these measures can continue without the epidemic emergency. They would have to be converted into regular laws and regulations, said FDP parliamentary group vice Theurer. “One is astonished that the Minister of Health is in favor of phasing out without submitting the necessary transfer regulations,” said Theurer.
Bavaria’s Prime Minister Markus Söder (CSU) pointed out that the “epidemic situation” is the legal basis for the infection control ordinance of the federal states. If it were to be delivered, Freedom Day would be the indirect consequence. His party colleague, Bavaria’s Minister of Health Klaus Holetschek, therefore called for a uniform legal framework in order to be able to continue taking measures. The future coalition is now required.
The head of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, Andreas Gassen, sees the end of the corona measures approaching in Spahn’s announcement. “From the end of November, the state corona rules could be dropped,” he says. “This lead time of six to seven weeks is necessary so that more people can be vaccinated.” Freedom Day – the end of all Corona measures – is gradually getting closer.
After the “epidemic situation” has expired, the Leipzig constitutional lawyer Christoph Degenhart only sees a basis for corona measures in those federal states that identify a corresponding infection process. Degenhart refers to paragraph 28a in the Infection Protection Act, in which the typical Corona measures such as access restrictions, mask requirements and keeping your distance are linked to the “epidemic situation”. If this ceases to exist, the state parliaments have the opportunity to take individual measures and resolve an “epidemic of regional importance”. “After the epidemic situation has expired, there is no longer any basis for the above-mentioned measures in my opinion,” he told the Handelsblatt. “These would then have to be lifted.”
How the corona situation is developing
The number of infections has increased slightly since last week. The RKI reported a seven-day incidence of 75.1 on Tuesday compared to 74.4 the previous day. The most important indicator for corona measures, the hospitalization incidence, fell from 2.02 to 1.92 according to the RKI. The value indicates the number of corona patients admitted to the hospital per 100,000 inhabitants.
A nationwide threshold, from when the situation can be viewed critically, is not provided for the incidence of hospitalization, among other things because of large regional differences.
With agency material.
More: More vaccinated than reported: what this means for corona policy