Germany speeds up coronavirus vaccinations with declining incidence

Germany has accelerated the vaccination campaign against coronavirus COVID-19, especially with regard to the booster dose, while the incidence of infections reflects a slight but continuous decrease.

On Friday, for the fourth consecutive day, the million doses administered -1.05 million- were exceeded, some 915,000 of which were of the so-called “booster” dose, according to figures updated today by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) of virology.

The percentage of citizens with the complete regimen is 69.5% and that of those who also received that booster dose rose to 22.5%.

Of the 27.5% of those who still have not received any dose, 4.8% correspond to children up to four years of age, for whom there is no authorized vaccine.

It is expected that the campaign will be activated among minors between 5 and 11 years old, after on Thursday the Permanent Vaccination Commission (Stiko) recommended the vaccine for this group among those who have previous pathologies.

The door is also open “based on individual wishes”, according to Stiko’s recommendation, who also advises vaccinating children of those ages in whose environment there are vulnerable people.

The cumulative incidence for seven days now stands at 402.9 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, according to figures updated this Saturday by the RKI. On Friday the level was 413.7 infections, while a week ago it was 442.7.

The number of deaths with or from covid-19 in the last 24 hours rises to 510, which places the total number of fatalities in the entire pandemic at 105,505 people.

The government of the Social Democrat Olaf Scholz, at the head of a coalition with Greens and Liberals, has launched the plan to proceed with the mandatory vaccination of health personnel and nursing homes.

On Friday, the two houses of Parliament – the Bundestag and the Bunderat – approved the corresponding bill to implement the mandatory vaccine in these sensitive work sectors or in contact with vulnerable people.

These professionals will have until March 2022 to present the corresponding certificate. Scholz defended this term – too long, in the opinion of the regional powers – due to the fact that it takes time to receive the complete guideline and have the highest level of immunity.

The law contemplates that the doses can be supplied in pharmacies or by dentists and veterinarians who meet certain requirements, for a limited period of time.

The new government is also working on a legal framework for the introduction of the mandatory vaccine in a generalized way, with the aim of having it ready to go into parliamentary proceedings by February.

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