Live coronavirus ticker: +++ 03:29 The medical president hopes for greater willingness to vaccinate +++

Medical President Klaus Reinhardt expects a greater readiness of the population for a corona vaccination in the coming months. “For those who have been vaccinated, the pandemic will lose its horror, they will feel better and be more relaxed. That will be contagious, but in a positive way,” the head of the German Medical Association told the “Germany publishing network.” Polls so far show that only slightly more than half of Germans want to get vaccinated; between 65 and 70 percent are necessary for herd immunity.

+++ 02:53 More than half a million deaths from corona in Latin America and the Caribbean +++
More than half a million deaths from coronavirus have already been registered in Latin America and the Caribbean. There were at least 500,800 corona deaths in the region, according to a tally by the AFP news agency. Latin America and the Caribbean is the second region in the world after Europe with more than 500,000 deaths registered by the pandemic. In Europe, this mark had been exceeded twelve days earlier. The Latin American states with the highest number of registered corona deaths are Brazil (around 192,000) and Mexico (around 120,000).

+++ 02:16 Lauterbach: nursing homes could theoretically force staff to vaccinate +++
SPD health expert Karl Lauterbach notes that staff could be forced to vaccinate. “With the Infection Protection Act there would be a legal basis for nursing homes and hospitals to force their staff to get vaccinated. But the federal government has promised that there will be no mandatory vaccination. It will stay that way, and that’s correct.” Lauterbach said. the “Rheinische Post” in Düsseldorf.

+++ 01:41 Biontech needs EU approval for additional vaccination dose in ampoules +++
The European Vaccine Authority (EMA) awaits a request from the vaccine manufacturer Bionteech for approval of the recall of six units of vaccine per ampoule. “The company has announced that it will submit a change request in the coming days, which will be quickly reviewed by the Committee for Medicinal Products for Human Use (CHMP). If the CHMP determines that six doses can be reliably withdrawn, it will change the current conditions. of the Recommend approval to support member states in the introduction of the vaccine, “said an EMA spokeswoman for the newspaper Bild.

+++ 01:04 Ifo Institute: lowering the value added tax brought little +++
According to one study, the temporary VAT reduction only had a comparatively small impact on economic growth. The Ifo Institute estimates the effect of consumption at 6.3 billion euros, reports the “Handelsblatt” in advance. This means that the increase in domestic consumption is 0.6 percent over the previous year. Therefore, the cost and benefit of the measure are in a rather unfavorable relationship, the document quotes Ifo expert Andreas Peichl: The reduction cost the state 20 billion euros and is the most expensive measure in the stimulus package. .

+++ 00:33 City Day calls for you to refrain from fireworks and firecrackers +++
The German Association of Cities calls on the population to act responsibly at the turn of the year in view of the Corona events and to refrain from lighting fireworks and firecrackers. “Unfortunately, in this extraordinary year, we failed to control the infection situation. That is why cities attract citizens: staying home on New Year’s Eve or celebrating only with friends in a small group,” says Städtetag – CEO Helmut Dedy for the “German publishing network”. Emergency rooms and hospitals should also be prevented from being further burdened with injuries due to improper handling of firecrackers.

+++ 00:06 EU buys Biontech again after +++
The European Union purchases an additional 100 million doses of vaccines from Pfizer / BioNTech. “We will have more than 300 million doses of this vaccine, which has been classified as safe and effective,” writes the president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, on Twitter. At first, it doesn’t say when the additional vaccine will be available. The EU initially bought 200 million cans in November with an option for an additional 100 million.

+++ 23:27 First case of the new variant of the coronavirus detected in the US +++
The coronavirus variant B.1.1.7 was first detected in the US state of Colorado. The US health authority CDC has been informed, Gov. Jared Polis’s office said. The coronavirus variant, first discovered in Britain, was found in a young man who is currently in isolation and has not traveled recently. It is the first known detection of the mutated type of virus in the US The new coronavirus variant may be significantly more contagious than the previously known form.

+++ 23:03 Spahn: In summer there is a vaccine for everyone +++
Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn assumes that everyone in Germany can get vaccinated “by summer.” However, this depends on whether vaccines from other companies like Johnson & Johnson, Astrazeneca and Curevac are approved, he tells Bild Live.

+++ 22:31 The first vaccinated British woman receives the second dose +++
Three weeks ago, Margaret Keenan was the first person in Britain to be vaccinated against the coronavirus; now, the 91-year-old woman received the second dose of the drug. The grandmother received the syringe that afternoon in the city of Coventry, in central England. Two doses per person are required for full protection from the vaccine. “It’s great to see Margaret Keenan receive her second dose of the Pfizer Biontech corona vaccine,” Health Secretary Matt Hancock tweeted. “We will come out of this pandemic together.” Keenan made headlines around the world after getting vaccinated three weeks ago. Her compatriots had called “Maggie” to get the vaccine: “If I can get it at 90, you can too.” He had celebrated his birthday between the two shots.

+++ 22:01 Greater Corona help for American citizens: Republicans oppose Trump +++
Republicans in the United States Senate initially left open whether they would agree to more aid from the crown for American citizens. The House of Congress “will begin to focus this week” on these and two other issues, Majority Leader Mitch McConnell announced. He blocked a move by Democrats to unanimously approve the increase immediately. This weighed on the stock market. The House of Representatives approved the payment of $ 2,000 instead of the $ 600 previously provided to each citizen. McConnell’s party colleague, President Donald Trump, is also calling for the measure. If Republicans “did not want to die,” they would have to agree immediately, the outgoing US president wrote on Twitter.

+++ 21:30 France plans an even tougher curfew +++
France wants to tighten evening curfews in areas particularly affected due to the increase in crown numbers. Health Minister Olivier Véran announced in the evening on the France 2 television channel that a curfew will be proposed there starting at 6 p.m. That curfew, called couvre-feu in France, is currently applied throughout the country from 8 pm So, people can only leave the house for a valid reason: simple walks, shopping or sports are not included. The minister said that the situation is currently particularly serious in the Grand-Est region bordering Germany, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region and in the Franche-Comté and Alpes-Maritimes areas.
Here you can read more about it.

+++ 21:01 Saxony with the highest incidence in a comparison of countries +++
When it comes to new infections, Baden-Württemberg is at the top of the federal states with 2812 cases. North Rhine-Westphalia (more than 2,524), Bavaria (2,335) and Saxony (2309) are still close behind. However, the Free State is still the federal state with the highest incidence: with 399.5 infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days, Saxony is just below the 400 threshold. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania has a new daily record with 459 cases notified. None of the 16 federal states achieved double-digit growth. Bremen (156) and Saarland (295) register the lowest increases.

+++ 20:35 Current state of the data in Germany: for the first time more than 1000 deaths were reported +++
For the first time since the pandemic began, the number of deaths in Germany has passed the 1,000 mark. As can be seen from information from state authorities evaluated by ntv.de, the number of deaths reported in connection with an infection increased from 1,051 to 31,676. The worst day so far was Tuesday a week ago (December 22) with 940 deaths.

The number of reported coronavirus infections in Germany amounted to 1,680,583. This added 17,048 new cases. Around 360,300 people are currently infected.

The infection rate (R value) is given by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) as 0.54 (previous day: 0.71). This means that an average of 100 infected people infect another 54 people with Sars-CoV-2. The 7-day R-value is currently 0.67 (previous day: 0.74). That is the lowest level since spring. Since the calculation of the R values ​​is based on the distribution of the reported cases, these indicators are influenced by the combined effect of weekends and holidays. In its management report, the Robert Koch Institute warns against premature applause for declines: “Compared to the previous week, an apparent decrease in incidents and the number of cases can be observed in all federal states during the holidays of Christmas. It is quite possible that this with a reduced test activity of the population during the Christmas holidays, as well as the delay in notification by the health authorities. If it is a real trend it will become evident in the coming weeks “.

According to the Divi Register, 5,649 Covid-19 patients are currently being treated in intensive care in Germany, 3,071 of whom are ventilated. Around 4,728 intensive care beds are still available in German clinics.

You can read more information about the most important corona data here.

Read more news from the day before here.