[ad_1]
“The situation is more serious than ever”, warns the head of RKI, Wieler, and calls on the Minister of Health, Spahn, to urgently limit all contacts. Spahn was confident that a vaccine would be approved before Christmas.
Federal Minister of Health, Jens Spahn, announced at a press conference that a first vaccine against the coronavirus would be approved before Christmas. One can be optimistic that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) will make a decision on December 23, he said. This should apply to the entire EU, no national solutions are planned.
Therefore, the EMA will decide on the Biontech and Pfizer Covid-19 vaccine. The authority had stated that it wanted to do so by December 29 at the latest. He has yet to confirm on December 23.
Spahn emphasized that the sooner approval is granted, the sooner vaccines could be administered. The goal is to start doing it before the end of the year. As of today, several vaccination centers have been established in Germany and they are ready to start vaccinations immediately. He defended not to provide an emergency approval for vaccines, but a regular EMA procedure. This is important for confidence in vaccines.
“An emergency stop will have a long skid mark”
Even with the crown lock now tighter, Spahn doesn’t expect quick effects to contain the pandemic. “Even an emergency stop will have a long slip mark.”
Continuous facility closures are required starting this Wednesday. “It is better now with the prospect of success than after Christmas with the risk of major side effects.” Now it is important to consistently implement the requirements in all areas.
“Too many people are infected right now”
Along with Spahn, RKI President Lothar Wieler also called at the press conference to adhere to restrictions on social contacts and, if possible, not to exhaust the upper limits allowed.
Wieler expressed concern about the infection: “The situation is more serious than ever in this pandemic.” The number of infections and deaths is too high. “Too many people are infected right now,” Wieler said. With between 12,000 and 29,000 new infections reported per day, the number of cases in December would be significantly higher than in November. It is the “result of the carelessness of some people,” said the head of RKI.
Currently 325,000 people in Germany are infected with Sars-CoV-2, in the summer months there were a few thousand. The 80-year-old age group is increasingly affected, with a particularly high risk of serious and deadly diseases. Wieler emphasized: “We have to be prepared for the fact that the situation will get worse again at Christmas.”
