Germany's "pandemic of the unvaccinated" | DW News

Germany registered a record number of COVID-19 cases on Thursday, breaking a record set in December 2020. Disease control agency the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) reported 33,949 new infections in a single day.

The news came one day after Health Minister Jens Spahn declared that Germany was living in a "pandemic of the unvaccinated" and that the fourth wave of the virus was "in full force" across the country.

What is the situation for hospitals and vaccines?

As Germany's vaccination program lags behind other European countries, Spahn also warned that those unwilling to get vaccinated could face new restrictions, such as being barred from shops and restaurants.

Recent figures from the RKI show that only 66.5% of Germans are fully vaccinated, compared to 88% in Portugal and 81% in Spain.

Hospitals were also beginning to buckle under the pressure as the number of intensive care beds filled up, largely populated by the unvaccinated.

On Wednesday night, the rate of hospitalizations per 100,000 residents over 7 days, the German government's new key statistic to measure the severity of the pandemic, rose to 3.62 up from 3.29 just the day before.

Subscribe: https://www.youtube.com/user/deutschewelleenglish?sub_confirmation=1

For more news go to: http://www.dw.com/en/
Follow DW on social media:
►Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/deutschewellenews/
►Twitter: https://twitter.com/dwnews
►Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/dwnews
Für Videos in deutscher Sprache besuchen Sie: https://www.youtube.com/dwdeutsch

#Germany #Coronavirus #Pandemic