[ad_1]
BIt could reach a point where Germany accumulates half of the vaccine doses that have been vaccinated so far. As of Wednesday, 12,495,345 doses were administered, but only 8,161,239 doses were administered. An overhang of more than four million cans, or more than a third, and the range now threatens to diverge more and more.
Because in the next eight weeks Biontech wants to deliver four million more cans to the European Union, in addition to the already assured deliveries of millions from all producers. At the beginning of the week alone, 960,000 cans of AstraZeneca and 1.01 million of Biontech were delivered. An additional 6.5 million cans are expected on April 4, in addition to the now significantly increased Biontech delivery. And, if approval is granted soon, there will also be a batch from US manufacturer Johnson & Johnson.
Source: WORLD Infographic
According to the president of the EU Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, an “additional package” has been negotiated with the manufacturer and its US partner Pfizer so that EU countries can specifically vaccinate at Corona’s hotspots. According to the distribution key, about 19 percent of the four million could go to Germany, which would correspond to about 760,000 cans.
That’s good news, actually. The first additional delivery will arrive in two weeks. And that should further increase the backlog of unused cans – on an average of seven days, it’s now around 3.2 million cans. So far, vaccination centers manage around one million vaccinations per week.
In order for the traffic jam to be reduced quickly, some politicians and medical professionals are calling for two changes: a move away from prioritization and immediate vaccination in private practices.
“We could start today, practices are ready”
Since the beginning of April, resident doctors must help vaccinate the population. But that is too late for the German Association of Family Physicians and the question remains: will there be enough vaccines by then?
Source: WORLD / Alina Quast
So far, only a few “pilot projects” have been running there, and crisis management is not intended to start at the national level until “early April”. Even the unexpected news of Biontech’s reinstatement doesn’t change anything at first.
Ulrich Weigeldt thinks it is too late. “We could start today. The practices are ready ”, says the president of the German Association of Family Physicians. “We certainly won’t have a vaccine left,” he announced.
Klaus Reinhardt, president of the German Medical Association, also told the “Rheinische Post” on Wednesday that too many specifications and testing procedures only unnecessarily delayed the vaccination campaign. “As soon as we have enough vaccines for everyone, family doctors and specialists should be able to decide for themselves the sequence of vaccinations.”
Spahn curbed expectations of rapid vaccination coverage
Andreas Gassen, director of the National Association of Health Insurance Physicians (KBV), is also calling for more speed. In an interview with WELT, he said that up to 20 million vaccinations per month are possible in practices, in addition to the approximately 1.5 million monthly vaccinations in centers.
Therefore, immunization of the adult population is still possible in July or August. Federal Health Minister Jens Spahn (CDU) reacted to the interview on Wednesday and immediately curbed expectations.
The numbers would soon increase significantly, he told ZDF. “But the amounts of vaccination will not immediately increase to 20 million per month or even 10 million per week.”
Initiation of vaccination for general practitioners: debate on prioritization
In early April, corona vaccinations will begin in German general practitioners’ offices. However, it remains to be clarified how the expected vaccine doses will be distributed to vaccination centers and practices.
Source: WELT / Simone Egarter
Some decision-makers vehemently oppose a relaxation of the vaccination sequence: Thomas Mertens, for example, chairman of the Permanent Commission on Vaccination (Stiko), has been warning against this for days. People in particular at risk threatened to “back down,” he argues.
Health Minister Spahn’s statements on this are, at least in part, contradictory: “Is the order dismissed?” ZDF presenter Dunja Hayali wanted to know from him on Wednesday. “It is still necessary,” Spahn replied. “It’s still important to stick to prioritization,” he added, emphasizing the word “yet” without giving a date for a possible departure. Ultimately, the decision is up to Spahn.
A resolution would not be surprising. The prioritization list has already been changed four times. Starting this week, the federal states may deviate from the order if necessary for the “efficient organization of vaccines” and the “rapid use of existing vaccines,” according to the corresponding ordinance.
Despite this, the latest resolutions of the federal-state conference establish that vaccination outside the centers, that is, in clinics or companies, must be vaccinated “strictly” according to a prioritization.
Anette Wahl-Wachendorf, vice president of the Company and the Association of Company Physicians (VDBW), is shocked: “Company physicians, for example, will not screen people with chronic diseases from the workforce,” she told WELT. AM SONNTAG last week. “For a faster vaccination, we have to deviate a bit from the bureaucracy,” demands the doctor.
If the company’s 12,000 doctors work two more hours a day and administer ten doses an hour, five million vaccinations a month would be feasible according to VDBW.
It is even possible to double the number with longer daily use, that is, ten million per month. However, federal-state resolutions say that the company’s physicians will only be “more involved in the course of the second quarter,” so there is no exact timeline yet.
On Wednesday, Health Minister Spahn will meet with representatives of the company’s doctors to discuss how to proceed. The outcome of the round had not yet been determined in the writing deadline.
At Vogtlandkreis, anyone over 18 can get vaccinated
As with rapid tests, local single aisles are now passing official specifications. A week ago, the city administration of Krefeld (North Rhine-Westphalia) decided to vaccinate its educators and teachers due to thousands of unused doses, a week earlier than planned by the State Health Ministry in Düsseldorf.
And since Wednesday, everyone in Vogtlandkreis has been able to get vaccinated from the age of 18. This is justified by the high number of infections. The deviation had previously been approved by Jens Spahn’s own Ministry, contrary to his statements on Wednesday.
On Wednesday night, Spahn announced that he would make “more flexibility” possible. But the prioritization will be fulfilled, he told the German press agency. The updated vaccination regulation, to be released Thursday, no longer includes an age limit for the AstraZeneca vaccine.
To allow as many first vaccinations as possible, the six-week interval between the second vaccination must be exhausted with the Biontech and Moderna vaccines; with AstraZeneca it is twelve weeks. However, it does not yet include a regulation on vaccination by general practitioners. The recommendation announced for Wednesday was delayed.
“All in Stocks” is the daily stock market shot by WELT’s business editorial team. Every morning from 7 am with financial journalists Moritz Seyffarth and Holger Zschäpitz. For stock exchange experts and beginners. Subscribe to the podcast at Spotify, Apple podcast, Amazon Music Y Deezer. Or directly through RSS Feed.
