German infection rate sets record, lawmakers tackle vaccine mandate

Berlin (dpa) – Germany’s seven-day incidence rate – the number of Covid-19 infections registered per 100,000 people during a week – has surged, just as lawmakers prepare to begin debate about a highly controversial proposal to mandate vaccination.

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the country’s disease control agency, reported a seven-day incidence of 940.6 on Wednesday. This is a new record, up from 894.3 a day earlier.

A week ago, the seven-day incidence stood at 584.4; a month ago, it was 220.7.

According to the fresh figures released by the RKI early on Wednesday morning, German health authorities reported 164,000 Covid cases in a 24-hour period.

The rising numbers are attributed to the dominance of Omicron, the more transmissible variant of the coronavirus, which has already caused soaring infection numbers in other countries.

Experts assume that there will be an increasing number of cases that are not recorded in the RKI data, partly because testing capacities and health authorities are at their limits in many places.

The daily death toll stood at 166, down from the 239 fatalities reported a week ago.

The number of coronavirus patients admitted to hospitals per 100,000 inhabitants within seven days was 4.07, according to Tuesday’s RKI figures, compared to 3.87 on Monday.

Along with curbing serious cases of Covid-19 that need hospital treatment, reducing sky-high infection rates are a key aim of a national vaccine mandate supported by Chancellor Olaf Scholz and his Health Minister Karl Lauterbach.

No bill has been introduced yet, but the issue is coming up for a first debate in parliament on Wednesday.

Scholz has firm backing for the mandate from the Greens, but not from the other party in his coalition, the liberal Free Democrats. The three parties have agreed lawmakers will not be bound by party affiliation when the vote comes before the Bundestag.

The exact scope of a possible vaccine mandate, and whether it would in the end be effective or enforceable, are highly sensitive issues.

According to a recent survey, a clear majority of people in Germany believe that a compulsory vaccination law would contribute to divisions in society.

In a survey conducted by the opinion research institute YouGov on behalf of dpa, 62 per cent of the respondents have this view.

Twenty-six per cent, on the other hand, did not see a risk of further division. Twelve per cent do not give a statement either way.