BERLIN (AP) – The German government said on Tuesday it would extend the country’s closure by three weeks until January 31, tightening social contacts and planning the limits of people’s movements in the hardest-hit regions as it tries to cut the numbers of highly stubborn infection. and a worrying number of coronavirus-related deaths.
Chancellor Angela Merkel said it was “absolutely necessary” to maintain the restrictions, especially in light of a more infectious variant of the virus that emerged in England.
“We need to get to a point where we can once again follow the chains of infection,” Merkel said after a lengthy video conference with Germany’s 16 state governors. “Otherwise, we will continue to delve into a blockade after a brief relaxation.”
The chancellor said the restrictions will be restricted to social contacts. People will be allowed to meet only one person outside their home.
In a new move, authorities across Germany will allow people from areas with more than 200 new infections per 100,000 residents for seven days to travel just 15 kilometers (just over nine miles) from their hometown, unless they have a good reason to go further.
“In particular, day trips are not a good reason,” Merkel said. He noted a number of recent incidents in which hikers hoping to ski or sled have overtaken winter resorts even though the lifts and other facilities are closed.
Merkel and governors are scheduled to reconvene on Jan. 25 on what happens after the end of the month.
Germany launched a partial nationwide closure on November 2, closing restaurants, bars, sports and leisure facilities. This failed to reduce infections and the current blockade, which also closed non-essential shops and schools, went into effect on 16 December. Initially it was to take place until January 10th.
Authorities say Germany’s reported figures for COVID-19 cases are distorted by lower tests and delayed reports during the Christmas and New Year period. The country’s disease control center says it hopes to have a reliable picture of what will happen only from Jan. 17, Merkel said.
But even according to current figures, Germany is far from its stated goal of getting new confirmed cases below 50 per 100,000 residents for seven days, the maximum level at which officials say contact tracking can work. correctly.
On Tuesday, the infection rate stood at 134.7 per 100,000 nationwide and 944 more deaths were reported to authorities in 24 hours, one of the highest daily death rates in a country that had a relatively low COVID-19 mortality rate during the first pandemic. phase.
Merkel said the emergence of the new variant in England is “one more reason” to maintain the restrictions. Some cases of the variant have been detected in Germany.
The chancellor defended the German approach to vaccinations following criticism fueled by the perception that Europe has started slowly and that the European Union was too hesitant to order the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, the only one authorized so far. for use on the 27-nation bloc.
Germany had vaccinated about 317,000 people on Tuesday, just over a week after the campaign. It is a better example than in other EU countries, but critics have pointed to faster progress in the UK, the US and Israel.
Merkel said it was “right and important” to order vaccines for the EU instead of individual countries for the whole bloc. He said it is “in Germany’s interest” as the country is surrounded by other EU member countries and at the center of the EU’s trade-dependent zone.
“A large number of people vaccinated in Germany along with many who are not vaccinated in our neighborhood will not be good for Germany,” he said. “Therefore, we do not want national efforts alone. We believe that the most effective health protection for us can be achieved through a common European procedure. “
Health Minister Jens Spahn, who has faced criticism from the German governing coalition, has repeatedly said that vaccinations are progressing as expected and that the slow start is because teams go first to residences to vaccinate more vulnerable. Merkel said she believes Spahn is doing “a great job.”
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