Read news from:
Austria
SHARE
COPY LINK

TRAVEL

Germany bans travel from UK over Covid Indian variant

Germany is putting in place a temporary ban on all travellers arriving from the UK except from its own residents due to concerns over the spread of a Covid variant first discovered in India.

Published: 21 May 2021 23:21 CEST
Germany bans travel from UK over Covid Indian variant
British Airways planes in Heathrow airport on May 17th. Photo: picture alliance/dpa/PA Wire | Steve Parsons

On Friday the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) classified the UK as a ‘virus variant area of concern‘ – Germany’s highest risk category.

Arrivals who are allowed to enter Germany will have to self-isolate for two weeks even if they test negative for Covid-19.

The health agency had moved the UK to the ‘risk’ country category a week ago in response to outbreaks in some areas linked to the Indian variant.

But due to Covid cases in the UK rising by more than 160 percent in a week, the RKI announced on Friday that Britain’s risk status was to increase.

READ ALSO:

From midnight on Sunday only German citizens or people with German residence permits will be allowed to enter the country when arriving from Britain.

As the UK is now classed as a “virus variant zone”, travellers entering Germany will have to be tested before departure for Germany and immediately enter a 14-day quarantine on arrival – even if they are fully vaccinated.

The ban does not apply to people on flight transfers through Germany who are not leaving the airport.

“There are local outbreaks occurring again, including cases of more infectious variants such as the Indian variant at present,” said German Embassy in the UK.

“Therefore, to prevent the further spread of the virus, the United Kingdom has been classified as an area of variant of concern with effect from 23 May 2021.

“A ban on transportation and entry into Germany therefore applies from 23 May.”

Indian variant a major concern for Germany

Germany last week eased some quarantine and testing restrictions, but strict rules remain for virus variant areas of concern.

Only 11 other countries, in Asia, Africa and Latin America – including India and Brazil – are currently listed by Germany in the high-risk category of zones where virus variants are circulating.

The Indian variant B.1.617.2 is regarded as especially contagious and has been one factor driving the explosion in coronavirus infections in India in recent months.

READ ALSO: Germany’s new relaxed quarantine and testing rules after travel

According to British Health Secretary Matt Hancock, speaking Wednesday, 2,967 cases linked to the variant have been identified in the UK, most notably in London and western England. That figure represents a 30 percent increase since Monday.

But so far the British government has insisted it remains on track to lift virtually all restrictions on public life from June 21st, after a successful vaccination campaign.

Earlier Friday, German Health Minister Jens Spahn voiced his concern at the situation in Britain, stressing the need to prevent the Indian variant
spreading in Germany.

Germany has been watching the UK closely in recent weeks due to the variant situation.

The latest report from the RKI published on Wednesday showed that the B.1.617 strain from India is being “increasingly detected” in Germany, but the share of it among samples of new cases tested remains relatively low.

In the report the RKI put the share of the variant at two percent of new cases for the week from May 3rd to 9th. The week before, it was 1.5 percent.

The RKI on Friday recorded 8,769 new cases of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours and 226 deaths in Germany, with a national incidence rate of 67.3 new infections per 100,000 people over the past seven days.

Member comments

Log in here to leave a comment.
Become a Member to leave a comment.

HEALTH

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

It’s back again: amid sinking temperatures, the incidence of Covid-19 has been slowly rising in Germany. But is this enough to merit worrying about the virus?

Published: 20 September 2023 12:05 CEST
Updated: 20 September 2023 22:22 CEST
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

SHOW COMMENTS