The mandatory vaccination against Covid-19, which Germany refused to hear about a few months ago, will be the subject of a bill to be submitted to parliament before the end of the year, in a bid to stem the outbreak, he said. today the future Chancellor Olaf Soltz.
Taking this big turn, Europe’s first economy hopes to persuade a maximum number of citizens to opt for vaccination before it becomes mandatory, if MEPs decide.
The German federal government and the state governments will take joint action to deal with the fourth wave of Covid-19, government spokesman Stephen Seibert said today. The federal government and the states are considering proposals, including restrictions on contacts, especially for the unvaccinated. Details of the plans will be studied by Thursday, he said.
“Many people have not been vaccinated,” Soltz told Bild TV.
Making vaccination mandatory is “for the protection of all of us”, he added, adding that he would like parliamentarians to consider the issue and put it to a vote by the end of the year so that it takes effect in February or March.
The Social Democrat future chancellor, who is expected to take office next week, made the remarks at the end of an emergency meeting with outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel, the future coalition and the heads of state to consider fighting the fourth wave of infections.
Germany had so far ruled out the radical option of imposing the vaccine, which was adopted by neighboring Austria.
Olaf Solz had opposed such a move during the election campaign, in a country where restrictions against Covid-19 have greatly divided public opinion.
On Tuesday, Soltz expressed his support for such a measure, it became known to his environment.
– “Dramatic” situation –
The debate on this issue has escalated in recent weeks, and the country is being hit hard by rising infections.
At the end of today’s meeting, “everyone agrees that the fourth wave of the pandemic has led to an extremely serious, sometimes dramatic, regional situation in our health system, in which the federal state and the states will react jointly and decisively.” , says the announcement of the chancellor, a few days before the departure of Merkel.
The health situation remains very tense, with the incidence rate currently being 452.2 per 100,000 inhabitants.
First priority, according to the chancellor: the continuation of the vaccination campaign.
“By Christmas, up to 30 million first, second and commemorative vaccinations should be possible,” the chancellor said.
Compulsory vaccination was recently decided for nursing home and hospital staff, as well as for German Federal Army (Bundeswehr) soldiers, and is expected to take effect soon.
Outgoing Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative Christian Democrat (CDU) and Christian Social Party (CSU) camp, which is preparing to join the opposition, now supports mandatory vaccinations.
And according to the Welt newspaper, a large majority of environmentalists, who will rule with the Social Democrats, are also in favor.
– Patch of rules –
The vaccination campaign has so far allowed the complete vaccination of almost 57 million people (68.5%).
Compulsory vaccination, long rejected by the majority of Germans, is now demanded by almost two-thirds (64%), according to a recent media poll by RTL and NTV.
Other measures to be discussed on Thursday are the adoption of significant contact restrictions, especially for the unvaccinated, including private meetings “or” the extension of 2G rules (ie: vaccinated or treated) to retail outlets and “restrictions during major events “.
“What needs to be done is very clear: contacts need to be reduced,” said future vice-chancellor and environmentalist Robert Hubbek.
Several severely affected states have already canceled Christmas shopping and barred the unvaccinated from accessing public places such as gyms, indoor sports facilities and leisure centers.
Many officials, however, consider the patchwork of rules to be confusing and want uniformity in restrictions at national level.
The German constitutional court today ruled that the radical restrictions imposed at the beginning of the pandemic to curb infections, such as curfews, school closures and curfews, were legal.
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