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“We have no need,” Health Minister Rudolf Anschober (Greens) said at a press conference on Monday. Instead, they will rely on “honest and transparent reporting work.” Despite the low numbers, Anschober was satisfied with the participation in the massive tests.
Pollster Peter Hajek’s current “Austria Trend” for APA and ATV had shown that just under one in five Austrians want to get vaccinated against Covid-19 in any case. Styrian Governor Hermann Schützenhöfer (ÖVP) publicly defended mandatory vaccination against, for example, his colleague from Vorarlberg Markus Wallner (ÖVP) and Carinthian Governor Peter Kaiser (SPÖ). “I never kept a secret about which side I am on,” Anschober said again against mandatory vaccination. This was also agreed within the federal government.
“Increased participation in mass tests”
What the Health Minister would like, however, is “even clearer, even wider participation” in the upcoming massive tests. You also want to reach groups that have so far been negative about this offer, as you said. How this should really happen is currently up for discussion. Despite the relatively low popularity in the first round of testing, Anschober spoke of quite a considerable number. Further evidence is also the reason why the seven-day incidence has increased slightly again.
Anschober was also optimistic about the effects of the recent shutdown. Experts also expected a decrease in the number of infections. “As long as this trend is falling, we have no reason to anchor additional measures,” he denied a possible tightening. This should only be taken into account if the trend is reversed and the numbers rise significantly again. On Wednesday, the government wants to publish another forecast of the number of infections.
However, Anschober and Labor Minister Christine Aschbacher (ÖVP) actually announced the labor offensive launched by the government together with the AMS, which is also aimed at attracting workers from the health and care sector. In the healthcare sector in particular, there will be a high need for workers in the coming years due to demographic development and upcoming retirements, both emphasized and referred to the reform that the government is aiming for in this area.
