

Pointing to official statistics that suggest that some 180,000 Germans have died owing to a Covid infection, Mr Lauterbach said: “That’s not a bad number. The draft document, seen by Reuters, states that starting from March 8 a maximum of five people from two households, excluding children younger than 14, will be allowed to meet, up from a maximum of two people under current rules. The Chicago Tribune, available at /news/breaking/. Germany to extend coronavirus lockdown until March 28: Draft. However, Mr Lauterbach defended his record, arguing that Germany’s caution meant that it had made it through the pandemic with fewer deaths than countries such as France and the UK. on 99 100 101 97 Carnival-going German couple contract coronavirus. A partial lockdown from 2 November only temporarily halted the rise in case numbers the total number of reported infections since the start of the pandemic.

Several recent studies have shown the harm done to children by school closures and contact restrictions was much worse than previously thought. In recent weeks, with case numbers constantly low, Germany has finally lifted mask mandates on public transport and ended quarantine for those who test positive for the virus. That was unnecessary,” he told ZDF, the German broadcaster, on Friday.Īs recently as April 2022, he was warning against lifting restrictions too quickly, saying that the country could be hit by a “killer variant”.Ī trained doctor, Mr Lauterbach gained a wide following among the German public, but critics warned that his predictions were alarmist. “What was a mistake was the long school closures. Before Mr Lauterbach was appointed health minister in late 2021, he became an influential advocate of strict lockdown measures as a backbencher.Īmong his more controversial proposals was the suggestion made in 2020 to suspend regular schooling for at least a year.
