Experts strongly warn against Omicron. RKI is enhancing its risk assessment. From the epidemiologist Zeeb’s point of view, the next wave will probably surpass all the previous ones. He advises to take more drastic steps before the new year.
BERLIN (DPA) – The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) has tightened its risk assessment due to the Omicron version of the coronavirus. The risk of infection is now seen as “high” for those who have been vaccinated twice and those who have recovered, RKI announced on Twitter.
For those who have not been vaccinated, it remains “very high”. For people who have been vaccinated with a booster vaccine, the institute rates the risk as moderate. Overall, the health risk to the population is assessed as “very high,” the institute writes in its revised risk assessment. It warns of a sudden increase in the number of cases.
“This is due to the occurrence and rapid spread of the omicron variant, which according to the current state of knowledge (from other countries) is spreading significantly faster and more effectively than previous virus variants,” writes RKI. The current development is “very worrying”. If Omicron continues to spread, it is feared that serious illnesses and deaths will increase further and that intensive care treatments available across Germany will exceed capacity.
Epidemiologist Hajo Zeeb also warned of a possible omicron wave force. “The number of new infections and people in the hospital will probably exceed anything seen so far,” said the expert from the Leibniz Institute for Prevention Research and Epidemiology’s Editorial Network Germany (RND) in Bremen. Preliminary data from Great Britain suggests that “the disease severity in the Omicron variant is similar to that in Delta”. High levels of hospitalization should be expected in Germany, especially in January.
Zeeb: Contact ban «meaningful and effective»
In view of this, the pocket demanded quick action. “We need strict measures before the new year.” Above all, contact restrictions are “extremely useful and effective”. People should again focus on a small, fixed group of people and get themselves tested regularly. “I consider between three and seven people suitable.” But despite contact restrictions and vaccinations, the general spread of Omicron can no longer be stopped, according to Zeeb. The new restrictions could slow the rate of spread. It is “absolutely necessary not to overload the health system”.
Last Thursday’s RKI weekly report said the RKI assessed the risk to the health of populations in Germany who were not vaccinated or had been vaccinated only once “too many in total”. For those who were fully vaccinated, it was considered moderate.
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