Crown: Austria is locked in despite similar figures to Switzerland

Austria in the “hard block”: The comparison with Switzerland in 7 points

Despite the measures, the number of corona infections in Austria continues to rise, which is why today the screw is being tightened again: a “hard” blockage is forcing the country to stop. Despite similar figures, measures in Switzerland remain more flexible.

“Every social contact is too much”Austria’s Chancellor Sebastian Kurz said at the weekend and at the same time announced the second lockdown for Austria. Private gatherings should be kept to an absolute minimum, and people can only leave the house if there are good reasons. Supermarkets, pharmacies and banks will remain open, but the rest of the shops will have to close. Let us compare the situation in Austria with that of Germany.

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Development of the pandemic

The number of cases in Austria and Switzerland remained at a similar level for a long time. In the past three weeks, however, he stood out with us a decrease in new infections from, but in Austria the curve continues to point upwards. Even if the level is still not at “our record highs” since the beginning of November, Chancellor Kurz sees a great need for action.

New infections in the last 7 days per 100,000 inhabitants

According to BAG, one can be “cautiously optimistic” with current developments in Switzerland. However, the following points are displayed: The situation in Switzerland is not significantly better than in neighboring Austria.

Health situation

Lying in absolute terms in Switzerland more people with Covid-19 in a hospital – and since the two countries have almost the same number of inhabitants with 8.86 million (Austria) and 8.57 million (Switzerland), the representation of the absolute numbers makes sense for once.

Number of people hospitalized since June

In terms of proportion, this would be a good number of 45 people for every 100,000 inhabitants in Switzerland and just under 38 in Austria. And the curve above also shows: The number of people hospitalized is increasing in both countries (although currently less strongly in Switzerland than in previous weeks).

When it comes to intensive care beds, we are right almost exactly the same as our neighbors – Both countries currently have between 500 and 600 patients in the IPS.

Covid patients in intensive care units

Deceased

In terms of deaths, Switzerland is no better than Austria, on the contrary: we are registering currently about 80 deaths per day – in Austria it was between 40 and 50 in the last days.

Test volume

Both countries test roughly the same number of people. Both countries show accordingly a similar positivity rate off: It has been between 20 and 25 percent in the last few days and is therefore well above the WHO recommended 5 percent limit.

Number of Covid tests performed

Regional distribution

The situation of the crown is relatively under control in the largest Austrian city of Vienna. The district of Rohrbach in northern Austria, for example, which borders Germany to the west and the Czech Republic to the east, has more to contend with. In the last 7 days, more than 1,300 new infections were registered for every 100,000 inhabitants.

According to the district chief, Wilbirg Mitterlehner, people “are still infected in the private sector,” but there is also an increase in some companies. Infections have also been found in nursing homes.

The Tyrolean district of Schwaz also has an equally high value with 1,291 new infections in the last 7 days per 100,000 inhabitants.

Dornbirn, which borders Switzerland, is also in the top 10 worst affected districts.

Measures taken

In Austria, stricter measures had already been adopted since 24 October. Inside, away from its own four walls, only up to six people were allowed to gather, outside twelve. This was true for birthday parties, courses, and also for amateur choirs.

A maximum of six adults were allowed to sit at a table in restaurants. In the outdoor area, a mask was required where distance could not be kept, and also in all train stations, stops and shopping centers. Apart from the night curfew in Austria, the measures were generally comparable to the rules in force in Switzerland.

As of Tuesday, the Austrian government gear shift again. From now on, a “stay at home” instruction applies: only those who do important errands, take care of relatives or have to leave home due to work obligations are allowed to leave the house. “Physical and mental relaxation” is also allowed without meeting other people. The new rules initially apply for three weeks.

Discipline of the population

Although the October measures were introduced a few days earlier than in Germany, the number of cases in Austria has yet to stabilize. the The reasons for this are only partially clear.. ORF says that through a survey carried out by the University of Vienna a certain «Pandemiemüdigkeit“He said:” In the spring, many respondents reported a new sense of cohesion in society, such as support for neighbors, friends and acquaintances. “

This resulted in a high level of approval of the measures and a high sense of responsibility. There was hope that the worst would happen in summer. The study writes that not much of this sentiment was left in the second wave. The polarization of society has also increased, for example between people with different attitudes to current restrictions.

This “pandemic fatigue” is reflected in mobility data, among other things. Despite the recommendation to stay home and despite the night curfew between 8 pm and 6 am people in Austria were not restricted to the same extent as in the first wave.

Mobility in Austria

It is also interesting to take a look at the Swiss mobility data, which Apple collects anonymously. After a drastic decrease in mobility in the first wave, people moved significantly more in summer than on the reference day in mid-January, which shouldn’t be unusual for a summer. Meanwhile, things are more or less at the level of January. Only public transportation has to live with losses according to Apple.

Mobility in Switzerland