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Another ten districts were changed to orange. Individual federal states tightened protective measures on their own.
Vienna In the morning, Rudolf Anschober met with the district captains on Friday and with the provincial captains in the evening. In the middle, the Minister of Health presented the current situation with new corona infections, and the situation is definitely positive: in recent weeks, there have been fears of an exponential development. That has now not come true, said the green politician. However: The numbers are still too high, especially for this time of year. On Friday morning there were 684 new infections in a 24-hour comparison. This would mean that new infections would no longer increase, but would remain on a high plateau.
The minister hopes that last week’s tightening, such as the mask requirement in restaurants or restrictions on participation in public and private events, will take effect. But that will only show up in the numbers after two to three weeks. At the same time, Anschober warns of the current climate change: “Now comes the phase where the risk increases because we are further inside,” he says. For the current situation, I would highly recommend using the Red Cross Crown app. More than 1200 warnings have already been implemented via the smartphone app. After a “somewhat unfortunate debate” about the application, it is expected that it can now be expanded.
Ten more orange districts
The Crown Commission changed the traffic light to orange for ten other districts on Friday. Her spokesperson, Daniela Schmid, also sees a stable and largely downward trend in the districts. Furthermore, the number of reproductions, as many other cases assume of a single case, is moving back towards 1.1. The average age of those who tested positive in the previous week was 35.
Anschober defended the much-criticized traffic light: internationally, the Austrian project is increasingly seen as a role model, because it is not based on pure infection figures. Risk analysis works perfectly. And the measures that result from changing the traffic lights? Anschober is confident in the possibilities offered by the new Covid-19 law, which may still go into effect at the weekend. The federal government was active in the beginning, and regional additions and expansions will also be possible in the future.
What comes out as a kind request from the Minister of Health sounds quite different to the Federal Chancellor: After meeting with the provincial governors, Sebastian Kurz asked the federal capital Vienna to impose more restrictions. Kurz recalled that Vienna had about twice as many cases relative to Lower Austria, Tyrol and Vorarlberg, which had also faced travel warnings. Obviously, the vice president is not good enough for the federal capital to be required to register in the restaurant sector. He expressed the hope that further “necessary” measures would be taken in Vienna. Interior Minister Karl Nehammer (ÖVP) saw “room for improvement” in the federal capital, emphasizing that these assessments have nothing to do with the electoral campaign. Not everyone saw it that way: Health Councilor Peter Hacker, who took part in the meeting in place of Mayor Michael Ludwig, later said that two weeks before the Vienna elections it could not be expected “that it would be a honeymoon there. “.
Other federal states increasingly faced with travel warnings – recently Germany and Switzerland added Tyrol and Lower Austria and Upper Austria to their risk lists (see article below) – are already beginning to take further action. Vorarlberg, Tyrol and Salzburg have taken a gastronomy curfew at 10pm, Vorarlberg has also reduced the size of the event and Innsbruck has established its own screening street.
On Friday, Lower Austria announced its own measures for the orange and red districts (the latter does not yet exist): in Orange, events with assigned seats can only take place indoors with 250 people, outdoors with 1000 people. Federal government guidelines should continue to apply to events without fixed seating. Mandatory guest lists have been announced for the restaurant industry. If the traffic light in a district turns red, the curfew must also be brought forward to 10 pm, Gov. Johanna Mikl-Leitner said. The latter is probably a gesture towards the federal party: Party leader and Chancellor Sebastian Kurz has praised the advancement of the curfew in the western federal states and has called on Vienna and Lower Austria to introduce it.
300 million euros in aid to organizers
The federal government announced on Friday its support for the ailing events industry: it will make 300 million euros available to those whose events must be canceled due to the crown or can only take place on a limited basis. This “protective shield” has not yet been approved by the National Council and approved by the EU Commission. It will only apply to events that have been planned in accordance with the applicable corona regulations.
“A large international congress can benefit as much as a cultural festival or a theater in the country,” said Secretary of State for Culture, Andrea Mayer (Greens). In the cultural sector, it must offer security for both rock and classical concerts and cabaret. Events in clubs and discos could also be included. Non-cancellable costs for room rentals, staff costs or conference technology are covered. (maf)
(“Die Presse”, print edition, 09.26.2020)
