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Hospital capacities will soon be exhausted, in a few days the need for triage will threaten. A second blockade is the only reliable means that works, says Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz.
The “blocking light” in early November was not enough. In view of the increasing number of infections and growing capacity problems in hospitals, the government is pulling the emergency brake and imposing a hard lockdown, which will apply from Tuesday to December 6.
Federal Chancellor Sebastian Kurz announced the new rules on Saturday at 4:30 pm, in the usual round of four with Vice Chancellor Werner Kogler, Interior Minister Karl Nehammer and Health Minister Rudolf Anschober. And he added an appeal: “My urgent request is: Do not meet with anyone.” The more consistently the stock comes out of the shutdown, the faster it will work. A second blockade is the only reliable means that works against the spread of the infection. It is also important to save Christmas.
Doctors had previously warned urgently about utilization issues in intensive care medicine: If the trend is not reversed, there will be “a triage situation in the next few days,” said Klaus Markstaller, president of the Austrian Society of Anesthesia. , Resuscitation and Intensive Care Medicine at a press conference Saturday afternoon. 567 beds out of 2,000 intensive care beds are already occupied by Covid 19 patients. The classification would mean that not all people for whom intensive care treatment makes sense can get it. Then doctors must decide who will get an intensive care bed. To avoid this, the following restrictions apply as of Tuesday:
school
The question that was particularly controversial beforehand was whether schools are still open. Not only the Minister of Education, Heinz Faßmann, but also many experts and the traffic light commission have spoken in favor. However, the opposite decision has now been made: elementary schools, new middle schools, and lower grades of elementary schools will also switch to distance learning starting Tuesday. That was already the case in higher grades and universities. Schools will provide care for those children who cannot be cared for at home. However, unlike spring, there will not only be “emergency care”: “learning stations” will be set up in schools that parents can also send their children to on a daily basis. Rather, teachers can also direct individual students to attend these study groups. This is primarily intended to help children from disadvantaged homes. In distance education, nothing new should be addressed, but what has been learned should be deepened. School work that was planned for the next three weeks will be postponed and, if necessary, can be canceled entirely.
Exit restriction
The current nightly exit restrictions (8:00 PM to 6:00 AM) will extend to the entire day. That means: you have to have a reason to leave your apartment or house. However, these reasons are quite broad, especially when the situation is compared to exit bans in other countries. You can leave the apartment for work reasons, to help family members, to go shopping, for physical and mental relaxation, among other things. You can also meet other people, not indefinitely, but still: contact with “individual close relatives or other important caregivers” is still possible, so that “contact is generally maintained several times a week.” And how do you show it? According to the ordinance, the reasons must be “credible” to the security forces.
If you leave your home, you must keep a safe distance of one meter from other people outside the home. In closed rooms (exception: private apartments), mouth and nasal protection should also be used. Unlike the first blockade, the use of public transport is not limited to professional purposes.
Stores closed
As in the spring, commerce, body-friendly service businesses (such as hair salons, massage parlors), and leisure facilities must close. Exceptions apply to basic services; supermarkets, drugstores, pharmacies, tobacconists, banks and the post office remain open.
Hospitals, homes
During the first confinement, no visits were allowed, this time very restricted: residents of nursing homes and nursing homes and patients in hospitals can normally receive visits once a week. These visitors must have a current negative Covid test or wear a medical protective mask (CPA).
The exceptions to the visitor restriction apply to patients in hospice or hospice care, pastoral care, representatives of home residents, or individuals in need of support. In hospitals, children can be accompanied or visited by up to two people; a companion is allowed during pregnancy and delivery. Strict rules also apply to staff: an antigen test or PCR must be performed every week.
Sport
Amateur sport will be suspended again, recreational and amateur athletes will no longer be able to enter sports facilities. All contact sports are prohibited, including soccer. Individual and recreational outdoor sports are allowed as long as there is no physical contact. There are exceptions for professional sports: athletes are evaluated regularly, clubs must, as before, submit to and adhere to a concept of prevention.
Practice of religion
There are still relatively few restrictions on the practice of religion. With regard to exit restrictions, “the satisfaction of basic religious needs” is expressly an exception. Only funerals are restricted: a maximum of 50 visitors is allowed. However, Kurz announced that religious communities will suspend Masses, etc. for the next three weeks. Demonstrations are allowed, with no limit on the number of participants.
Workplace
The home office is recommended whenever possible. If you work in the company, a distance of one meter is required. If this is not possible, it is mandatory to protect your mouth and nose.
The government’s plans have met with fundamental criticism from opposition parties. The leader of the SPÖ, Rendi-Wagner, evaluated the measures as an admission of guilt for the total failure of the government in managing Covid. Similar to FPÖ. “In short, Kogler, Anschober and Nehammer are trying to bury our republic,” said club boss Kickl. Neos boss Meinl-Reisinger spoke of the “failure” of the government. His only job in recent months was to prevent the second shutdown.
(“Die Presse”, print edition, November 15, 2020)
