Lauterbach: ‘Germany’s Seven Day Incidence Two to Three Times Higher than Declared’

Health Minister Karl Lauterbach believes Germany’s actual Incidence is a lot higher than the official numbers suggest right now. The ongoing holidays are to blame for the issue.

Berlin, December 30th, 2021 (The Berlin Spectator) — Germany’s new Health Minister Karl Lauterbach asked the nation to refrain from celebrating big parties on New Year’s Eve. People should gather with few people instead, in order to make sure no new infection chains were created. According to him, the actual situation is not being imaged by the available numbers right now.

‘Solid Data Situation’

During the ongoing vacations, many health authorities are not reporting their Corona infection numbers. Far less Corona tests are conducted, also because all schools are closed. In some German states, the vacations end on January 3rd, in others on the 10th. That is why reliable numbers are not expected to come in until the second week of the new year. Especially in a situation like this one, in which an Omicron wave is expected to hit, this situation is not ideal.

Minister Lauterbach stated Germany’s Seven Day Incidence was “probably two to three times higher” than the statistics suggested. His Ministry was working on collecting more reliable data. He said there would be a “solid data situation” until Chancellor Olaf Scholz and the First Ministers would meet for their next Corona conference on January 7th, 2022.

Vaccination Rate at 71 Percent

So far, 13,129 Omicron infections have been registered in Germany, according to the Robert Koch Institute. The number includes suspected cases which need to be rechecked and confirmed. For North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany’s largest state, 4,481 cases were reported. Bavaria had 2,407 on Wednesday, Hamburg 1,684, Baden-Württemberg 1,287, the north-western state of Schleswig-Holstein has 820 Omicron infections, Lower Saxony 590 and Berlin 528. In the remaining nine states, the numbers range from 413 (Hesse) to 11 (Thuringia).

According to the official numbers, more than 42,000 new Coronavirus infections have been registered since yesterday. Germany’s Seven Day Incidence increased a little, to 207.4. The country’s vaccination rate just reached 71 percent. The government is trying to have another 30 million immunization shots administered until the end of January, after it reached its first goal to get 30 million people vaccinated or boostered between November 18th and the end of the year.

Booster Shots for Kids

The federal state of Berlin is now offering booster vaccinations against COVID-19 for 12- to 18-year-olds, three months after their second shots, as the city state’s new Health Senator Ulrike Gote announced. Earlier this week, Germany’s Health Minister Karl Lauterbach had said that members of this age group were entitled to booster shots. In their case, the Biontech vaccine is being used. The Moderna product is for persons from 30 years of age.

The latest local Corona outbreak was reported in Henstedt-Ulzburg, a town located in the north-western state of Schleswig-Holstein. After two parties took place at a discotheque there, 800 people were sent into quarantine because at least one guest tested positive for Omicron.

Note: Since the editing software we use cannot handle the size of our Corona Chronology for 2021 anymore, we already are in 2022. Looking for the daily Corona update for Germany? Find it here.
ALL CORONA CHRONOLOGIES:
Corona Chronology for Germany, 2022 (from Dec. 22nd, 2021)
Corona Chronology for Germany, 2021
Corona Chronology for Germany, 2020

The Berlin Spectator needs your support.
There are several ways:
> You can support us via Paypal.
> You can become our patron at Patreon.

So far, we have seven patrons. We are very thankful, but we need many more supporters.
Thank you! We appreciate your support.

CoronavirusHealth
Comments (1)
Add Comment