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19,990: Germany reaches new record number of coronavirus cases

The number of daily coronavirus cases hit a new record in Germany on Thursday, but the good news is that the all important R number is dropping further below the value of one.

Published: 5 November 2020 09:33 CET

19,990: Germany reaches new record number of coronavirus cases

Photo: DPA

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) confirmed on Thursday morning that health authorities had registered 19,990 new cases of the virus in the past 24 hours, beating the previous record of just over 19,000 which was reached last Saturday.

The number exceeded the prediction Chancellor Angela Merkel made at the end of September that cases could grow to over 19,200 daily by Christmas.

A further 118 people have died with or of the virus in the past day, putting the total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic at just under 11,000.

The good news from the RKI’s daily report though is that the so-called R number – the estimate of how many people an infected person passes the virus on to – has dropped below one.

The R number reported on Thursday was 0.81, dropping down from 0.94 on Wednesday. This value paints a picture of the rate of infection roughly ten days ago.

If the R number remains below one for a sustained period of time then the number of daily infections will also gradually decrease.

There are currently 2,546 Covid-19 patients in intensive care across the country, an increase of 158 on the previous day.

There are still 7,000 free intensive care beds across the country, with an additional reserve capacity of 12,700. However there has been concern raised in recent days that there are not enough qualified nurses to man all the beds.

READ ALSO: 'Worse than spring': German hospitals fear record number of coronavirus patients

Member comments

Anonymous - 5 November 2020 at 10:22 CET

If the R rate is below 1 then why do we still have restrictions in our daily lives?

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Could there be a new wave of Covid-19 in Germany this autumn?

More people donning face masks in supermarkets, friends cancelling plans last minute due to getting sick with Covid-19. We might have seen some of those familiar reminders recently that the coronavirus is still around, but could there really be a resurgence of the virus like we experienced during the pandemic years?

According to virologists, the answer seems to be ‘maybe’: since July, the number of people newly infected with Covid-19 has been slowly rising from a very low level.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), nine people per 100,000 inhabitants became newly infected in Germany last week. A year ago, there were only around 270 reported cases.

Various Corona variants are currently on the loose in the country. According to the RKI, the EG.5 (also called Eris) and XBB.1.16 lines were each detected in the week ending September 3rd with a share of just under 23 percent.

The highly mutated variant BA.2.86 (Pirola), which is currently under observation by the World Health Organisation (WHO), also arrived in the country this week, according to RKI.

High number of unreported case

The RKI epidemiologists also warned about a high number of unreported cases since hardly any testing is done. They pointed out that almost half of all registered sewage treatment plants report an increasing viral load in wastewater tests.

The number of hospital admissions has also increased slightly, but are still a far cry from the occupation rate amid the pandemic. Last week it was two per 100,000 inhabitants. In the intensive care units, only 1.2 percent of all beds are occupied by Covid-19 patients.

Still, a good three-quarters (76.4 percent) of people in Germany have been vaccinated at least twice and thus have basic immunity, reported RKI.

Since Monday, doctors’ offices have been vaccinating with the adapted vaccine from Biontech/Pfizer, available to anyone over 12 years old, with a vaccine for small children set to be released the following week and one for those between 5 and 11 to come out October 2nd.

But Health Minister Karl Lauterbach has so far only recommended that people over 60 and those with pre-existing conditions get vaccinated.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Who should get a Covid jab this autumn in Germany?

“The pandemic is over, the virus remains,” he said. “We cannot predict the course of coming waves of corona, but it is clear that older people and people with pre-existing conditions remain at higher risk of becoming severely ill from Covid-19”

The RKI also recommended that people with a cold voluntarily wear a mask. Anyone exhibiting cough, cold, sore throat or other symptoms of a respiratory illness should voluntarily stay at home for three to five days and take regular corona self-tests.

However, further measures such as contact restrictions are not necessary, he said.

One of many diseases

As of this autumn, Covid-19 could be one of many respiratory diseases. As with influenza, there are no longer absolute infection figures for coronavirus.

Saarbrücken pharmacist Thorsten Lehr told German broadcaster ZDF that self-protection through vaccinations, wearing a mask and getting tested when symptoms appear are prerequisites for surviving the Covid autumn well.

Only a new, more aggressive mutation could completely turn the game around, he added.

On April 7th of this year, Germany removed the last of its over two-year long coronavirus restrictions, including mask-wearing in some public places.

READ ALSO: German doctors recommend Covid-19 self-tests amid new variant

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