Angela Merkel announces new curbs for unvaccinated, backs mandatory shots

ANI
03 Dec 2021, 06:18 GMT+10

Berlin [Germany], December 3 (ANI/Sputnik): The outgoing German chancellor and her successor announced sweeping new restrictions for the unvaccinated and backed mandatory anti-coronavirus shots on Thursday.

Both Angela Merkel and Olaf Scholz, who will soon replace her at the helm of the government, said vaccination was "the way out" of the pandemic as virus cases continued to surge nationwide.

"It is imperative that compulsory vaccination be adopted. If I were in the German Bundestag, I can say, I would vote for it," Merkel told a press conference after meeting regional governors.

The federal parliament's ethics council will draw up recommendations in the coming weeks, and compulsory vaccinations could become a reality in early February.

Merkel announced new restrictions for the unvaccinated, saying immunised Germans, who make up almost 69 per cent of the population, suffered from curbs too, while hospitalizations were overwhelming the national health care system.

"The fourth wave must be broken. We haven't done it yet. We currently have a certain period of calm but the [infection] level is too high. That's why it was important to agree these measures today," she said.

The new "minimal standard" restrictions range from limited contacts with other households to a blanket ban on access to non-essential businesses, cultural and recreational venues. They can be ramped up unilaterally by regional authorities.

Merkel added that the European Union planned to set a nine-month expiration date for the vaccination status and require re-immunization or follow-up vaccination with boosters. (ANI/Sputnik)

Watch latest videos

News RELEASES

Publish news of your business, community or sports group, personnel appointments, major event and more by submitting a news release to Colorado Star.

More Information

62 ℉

Fair in Aurora/Buckley Afb

International Business

Section

Noodle makers ask to increase prices after 14-years in Thailand

BANGKOK, Thailand: Instant noodle makers have asked Thailand to allow them to increase their prices to meet rising costs, which ...

Saudis buy stake in Russian energy companies, spend billions

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia: In a Twitter post published this week, Saudi Arabia's Kingdom Holding said it had invested in Russian ...

Billionaire Indian trader Rakesh Jhunjhunwala dead at 62

DELHI, India: Dubbed the country's Warren Buffett, India's best-known stock investor and self-made billionaire, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, died on August 14 ...

New money transfers spell end of credit card, says Brazil bank chief

SAO PAULO, Brazil: Brazil's central bank chief Roberto Campos Neto has said that he believes credit cards will cease to ...

As world economy slows, price of copper falls

LONDON, England: Despite a recent rebound, speculators in the international copper market, considered an indicator of the world's economic health, ...

Russian Central Bank reports economy down 4% in second quarter

MOSCOW, Russia: Financial information released by the Rosstat federal statistics service this week indicated that Russia's economy shrank 4 percent ...