The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) gave the nationwide seven-day incidence on Saturday morning as 192. This is evident from numbers that reflect the status of the RKI dashboard at 5 a.m. The day before, the value of new corona infections per 100,000 inhabitants and week was 194.3 (previous week: 232.1; previous month: 670.5). However, this information only provides a very incomplete picture of the number of infections. Experts have been assuming for some time that there will be a large number of cases not recorded by the RKI – mainly because by far not all infected people have a PCR test done. Only positive PCR tests count in the statistics. In addition, late registrations or transmission problems can lead to a distortion of individual daily values.
The health authorities in Germany recently reported 25,328 new corona infections (previous week: 28,369) and 203 deaths (previous week: 185) to the RKI within one day. Here, too, comparisons of the data are only possible to a limited extent due to the test behavior, late registrations or transmission problems. In general, the number of registered new infections and deaths varies significantly from weekday to weekday, since many federal states do not transmit them to the RKI, especially at weekends, and report their cases later in the week.
The RKI has counted 36,205,405 infections with Sars-CoV-2 since the beginning of the pandemic. The actual total number is likely to be significantly higher, as many infections go undetected.
Friday, November 18, 06:13: The distribution of the relatively new omicron subline BQ.1.1 in Germany has increased noticeably. The proportion of this pathogen in a sample was over eight percent the week before last, “which corresponds to a quadrupling of the proportion in the last four weeks,” writes the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) in its Covid 19 weekly report on Thursday evening. BQ.1, on the other hand, stagnated with a share of less than four percent.
BQ.1 and BQ.1.1 are descendants of BA.5 – the omicron variant, which has been responsible for the majority of infections in this country for months. According to models from the European disease control agency ECDC, both are likely to cause more than 80 percent of cases at the beginning of 2023. If the delay in the RKI data is taken into account, higher proportions than stated in the report can currently be assumed.
Early evidence suggests that these pathogens may evade the immune response of vaccinated and/or recovered people better than their predecessors. So far, however, according to experts, there are no signs that the nickname of BQ.1.1 used in social media – “Hellhound” – is program. An increased disease burden has not been observed so far.
“A decreasing trend” continued in the past week, writes the RKI in addition to the development of the reported corona cases in Germany. The evaluations also show that fewer laboratory tests for Sars-CoV-2 were carried out last week than at the beginning of September: around 509,000. In the meantime there had already been more than 900,000 tests per week.
6:27 p.m .: According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the decreasing trend in the reported corona cases in Germany has continued. Nationwide, the seven-day incidence last week fell by 17 percent compared to the week before, according to the RKI weekly report on the development of the corona pandemic on Thursday evening. Most results refer to the past week.
The number of hospital treatments for Covid-19 fell slightly, according to the report. Accordingly, fewer seriously ill people were treated with the virus in the intensive care units in the country.
The decline in the number of cases has been evident since mid-October, it said. The RKI also reports a decrease in outbreaks in old people’s and nursing homes.
Overall, the institute considers it more difficult to prevent acute respiratory infections in autumn, since people stayed indoors more often and longer. A high number of such infections can therefore be expected in the next few weeks.
2:52 p.m .: In view of the corona crisis and the flu season, sick leave for cold symptoms is still possible by telephone until spring – without an extra visit to the practice. The joint federal committee of doctors, health insurance companies and clinics decided on Thursday to extend a special regulation that ran until the end of the month until March 31, 2023. Certificates of incapacity for work due to minor respiratory diseases are still available for up to seven days after telephone consultation with doctors and can be extended for up to seven additional calendar days. The debate about easing corona protection requirements continues.
The Federal Joint Committee explained that at the moment it is difficult to predict how the number of cases of corona sufferers in hospitals will develop in the coming months. “To make matters worse: We are facing the cold and flu season,” said Chairman Josef Hecken. This speaks for relying on safety for patients and the practice staff.
Hecken pointed out above all to the chronically ill, who had to go to the doctor’s office more often than others and had to be particularly protected from avoidable infections. With sick leave over the phone, practices still have an easy-to-implement option to differentiate between mild and severe cases of illness and to avoid full waiting rooms.
2:27 p.m .: The Standing Vaccination Committee (Stiko) recommends the corona vaccination for children from six months to four years with certain previous illnesses. The recommendation also applies to children up to their second birthday who were born prematurely, the committee announced on Thursday. The aim is to prevent severe courses of Covid-19, hospital treatment and deaths.
According to Stiko member Martin Terhardt, risk factors include being particularly overweight, congenital immunodeficiency, heart defects, chronic severe lung diseases, chronic kidney diseases, neurological diseases and tumor diseases. These groups correspond to about ten percent of the age group.
For healthy children of the age mentioned without previous illnesses, the Stiko currently does not recommend a corona vaccination, “because severe courses are very rare in this age group and the vast majority of infections in healthy children are mild or asymptomatic”.
For the vaccination of children from six months to four years, the children’s vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer (Comirnaty), which was recently approved in the EU and has a lower dose, should preferably be used. Three doses (at intervals of three and eight weeks) are necessary for a primary immunization. Two doses of vaccine are recommended for children who have already had a corona infection.
Thursday, November 17, 2022, 6:10 a.m.: The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) gave the nationwide seven-day incidence on Thursday morning as 199.2. This is evident from numbers that reflect the status of the RKI dashboard at 5 a.m. The day before, the value of new corona infections per 100,000 inhabitants and week was 203.4 (previous week: 262.3; previous month: 680.9). However, this information only provides a very incomplete picture of the number of infections. Experts have been assuming for some time that there will be a large number of cases not recorded by the RKI – mainly because not all infected people have a PCR test done. Only positive PCR tests count in the statistics. In addition, late registrations or transmission problems can lead to a distortion of individual daily values.
The health authorities in Germany recently reported 33,306 new corona infections (previous week: 38,668) and 162 deaths (previous week: 175) to the RKI within one day. Here, too, comparisons of the data are only possible to a limited extent due to the test behavior, late registrations or transmission problems. In general, the number of registered new infections and deaths varies significantly from weekday to weekday, since many federal states do not transmit them to the RKI, especially at weekends, and report their cases later in the week.
The RKI has counted 36,152,490 detected infections with Sars-CoV-2 since the beginning of the pandemic. The actual total number is likely to be significantly higher, as many infections go undetected.
2:23 p.m .: According to a report, Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach (SPD) wants to reduce the remuneration for corona tests in test centers. In a draft for a new test regulation, it is planned that the centers would only receive eight euros per test instead of 9.50 euros, the editorial network Germany (RND) reported on Wednesday. Nothing should change in the deductible of those tested, usually three euros.
The RND reported that the planned reduction in remuneration was justified by the fact that test kits would become cheaper and the need for advice for those tested would decrease. “This leads to less effort for the service providers authorized to carry out tests,” says the draft.
Since the beginning of July, the citizen tests, which were previously free of charge for everyone, have only been available for certain groups without additional payment – such as children up to five years of age, pregnant women in the first three months or visitors to hospitals and nursing homes. Normally, a deductible of three euros has to be paid for a quick test in the test center.
Wednesday, November 16, 5:16 a.m .: The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) gave the nationwide seven-day incidence on Wednesday morning as 203.4. This is evident from numbers that reflect the status of the RKI dashboard at 5 a.m. The day before, the value of new corona infections per 100,000 inhabitants and week was 212.0 (previous week: 294.1; previous month: 700.7). However, this information only provides a very incomplete picture of the number of infections. Experts have been assuming for some time that there will be a large number of cases not recorded by the RKI – mainly because not all infected people have a PCR test done. Only positive PCR tests count in the statistics. In addition, late registrations or transmission problems can lead to a distortion of individual daily values.
The health authorities in Germany recently reported 38,610 new corona infections (previous week: 47,820) and 223 deaths (previous week: 227) to the RKI within one day. Here, too, comparisons of the data are only possible to a limited extent due to the test behavior, late registrations or transmission problems. In general, the number of registered new infections and deaths varies significantly from weekday to weekday, since many federal states do not transmit them to the RKI, especially at weekends, and report their cases later in the week.
The RKI has counted 36,119,184 detected infections with Sars-CoV-2 since the beginning of the pandemic. The actual total number is likely to be significantly higher, as many infections go undetected.
1:05 p.m.: Crowds of residents in southern China’s industrial metropolis Guangzhou have escaped a compulsory lockdown and clashed with police as their anger over strict coronavirus lockdown measures took over. A police vehicle was overturned by protesters and Covid control barriers were knocked down. Chinese authorities deployed riot teams to the area. The riots follow Guangzhou’s worst Covid outbreak since the pandemic began.
Tensions had been building in Guangzhou’s Haizhu district, where residents are under house arrest. Many poorer migrant workers live in the area. They have complained that they are not paid if they cannot work. Food shortages and skyrocketing prices are also reasons for the unrest.
The unrest started with rumors that have spread. Testing companies would allegedly falsify PCR results to artificially increase the number of infections in order to make more money.
Tuesday, November 15, 6:22 a.m .: According to a new survey, the fear of contracting corona continues to decrease in Germany. In a representative study by the Forsa Institute on the most feared diseases, 18 percent of those surveyed stated that they were most afraid of Covid-19. That is only half as many as in the first Corona year 2020, when the infection was the greatest health threat for 37 percent. Last year, Covid-19 triggered a particularly high level of fear in only 20 percent of those surveyed. Cancer (72 percent), Alzheimer’s (55) and serious accidents (51) continue to spread far more horrors. The survey was carried out on behalf of DAK-Gesundheit.
“The corona pandemic has apparently become so commonplace for many people that the fear of infection is decreasing,” said the health insurance company’s CEO, Andreas Storm, in a press release. However, this should not lead to protective measures being neglected. “In the coming winter months in particular, we have to comply with certain rules in order to protect the vulnerable groups in our society and to avoid overloading the health system,” added the DAK boss.
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