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The sharp rise in corona infections in recent days is increasing the pressure on policy: According to information from SPIEGEL, the federal government wants to introduce additional requirements for masks and a curfew in restaurants when the number of new infections is 35 per 100,000 inhabitants in a region. exceeds within a week. This mask requirement will be introduced where people come closer or closer, says the draft resolution for consultations between Chancellor Angela Merkel (CDU) with the heads of government of the countries, which has received SPIEGEL.
In addition, the number of participants in the events will be limited to 35 new infections, so the exceptions require “a hygiene concept agreed with the responsible health department.” According to the template, the exact maximum has yet to be determined. The same happens with the beginning of the curfew for gastronomy. Bars and clubs should also be closed from the threshold of 35 new infections. Details should be the subject of discussions on Wednesday afternoon.
The measures must be “specific and comparable between regions”
If the so-called 7-day incidence exceeds the value of 50, states should continue to “consistently take stricter local restriction measures,” the document continues. This can also include contact restrictions in public spaces. The measures must be “specific and comparable between regions”.
By tightening measures, the number of contacts in the population should be selectively reduced “where there is a particular risk of infection,” he continues, “despite the onset of the cold season and the associated relocation of many indoor activities.”
Citizens are also asked to carefully consider whether celebrations with family or friends are currently necessary. They are considered one of the main sources of infection.
If the increase in the number does not stop “within 10 days at the latest” with the envisaged measures, further restrictions are “inevitable”, for example, a restriction of contact in public space to members of two households.
However, the draft contains no new rules on the controversial accommodation ban. Rather, citizens are “urgently” urged to avoid unnecessary travel outside risk areas and into areas within Germany with a high number of infections. In many federal states, travelers from areas with a high number of infections already have to present negative corona tests if they want to stay in hotels or pensions. However, overnight stays with friends and family are allowed. In light of the fall break, the regulation had sparked discussions in many federal states.
In addition, the federal government wants to improve aid measures for industries particularly affected by the corona pandemic. The planned restrictions in light of the growing number of infections would mean that some areas of the economy would have to accept considerable restrictions on their business operations in the coming months, according to the draft resolution. Therefore, the federal government “will expand aid to companies and improve conditions in the main economic sectors affected.”
Chancellor Merkel had repeatedly made it clear that another closure of social and economic life, such as that of the spring, should absolutely be avoided. The country’s leaders have recently disagreed on many points.
In view of the current critical situation, the draft resolution describes the fight against pandemics as a task that has a “historical dimension”. “In these days the question will be decided whether in Germany we have the strength to stop again the increase in the number of infections,” says the document. But this presupposes “great determination and the will of society as a whole.”
The Robert Koch Institute reported 5,132 new infections Wednesday morning, more than since mid-April (read here why the numbers are barely comparable).
