Germany could become the next country to impose stricter regulations on those who are not fully vaccinated, after the parties forming their future new coalition government toughened their approach. Covid-19 is proposed in parliament.
The proposed measures would require Germans to provide proof of vaccinations or have tested negative in order to ride a bus or board a train, as the country’s expansion of the “3G” system requires people to enter. certain places and contexts.
Policy documents by the Social Democrats (SPD), Liberal Democrats (FDP) and Greens are set to vote in the House of Commons, as the three so-called “traffic lights” parties are close to the political establishment. new government.
It comes as Germany is facing a wave of infections and reflects growing exasperation across the EU at those who continue to refuse vaccinations.
About two-thirds of Germans are fully vaccinated – one of the lowest rates in Western Europe – and the country’s top politicians have turned to tough rhetoric and restrictions in an effort to push this rate is higher.
Infections meanwhile are increasing at a rapid rate. The country is approaching the seven-day average with 40,000 new cases per day, the highest rate since the pandemic began and more than double the number in early November.
If the measures proposed by the union are agreed, they will bring Germany closer to its southern neighbor Austria, where an attack on the unvaccinated went into effect on Monday. . It prohibits unvaccinated people – more than a third of the country’s population – from leaving their homes except for a few specific reasons.
The measures are being enforced by police officers carrying out spot checks, and were announced alongside a stern warning from the country’s new prime minister Alexander Schallenberg. He called the nation’s vaccine uptake “disgustingly low” and said those who were unvaccinated would now have to go through “exactly what we all suffered in the past.” year 2020.”
Austria, where vaccination rates are lower than Germany’s, is suffering from an intense wave of infections. In contrast, Spain and Portugal avoided the brunt of the winter wave after posting the highest vaccination rates in Europe.
Britain asks for boosters
Other countries in Europe are adopting measures designed to improve vaccine use. On Monday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson both confirmed that a third, booster vaccine would soon be required to be considered fully vaccinated.
“It’s very clear that having three injections – booster shots – is going to be an important fact and it’s going to make your life easier in every way, and we’re going to have to adjust our concept of what these things are. What constitutes a full vaccine. about that,” Johnson said at a press conference.
This step has already been taken in France, where cases are inching up. The country introduced tighter entry regulations this week for unvaccinated travelers from 16 EU countries.
Tensions are growing in some parts of the bloc; In Athens, public health workers protested on Monday over wages and conditions amid mounting pressure on Greek hospitals.
Greece released a record number of Covid-19 cases this month. Reuters reports that the country introduced mandatory vaccinations for healthcare workers in July, but protesters say the move has resulted in a backlog of unfilled staff. Reuters reported.
Michalis Giannakos, President of the Union of Public Hospital Workers, told Reuters: “Stretchers at hospitals on duty are increasing, (and) patients are prioritized for selection into intensive care units, based on their age.
