“We have a shortage of vaccines in the first quarter,” said Karl Lauterbach, an epidemiologist and minister in the center-left coalition government.
And the German news agency (dpa) reported that he pledged, shortly after taking office, to conduct an inventory of vaccine stocks in Germany.
Lauterbach said the results of this inventory surprised many, “including me.”
The minister said he is already working on ways to overcome the shortage. “I hope to have positive news in the coming days,” he added.
The government is said to be using all possible avenues to get more vaccines, including by approaching directly the manufacturers – although Lauterbach has indicated that the methods must be in line with the European Union.
About 69.7% of Germany’s population is fully vaccinated.
Germany has launched a major campaign to administer an additional 30 million doses by the end of the year, in an effort to increase the country’s vaccination quota and get booster doses into the arms of those who have already been vaccinated.
On Tuesday, health ministers in 16 German states gathered to coordinate their response to the pandemic.
They agreed that entry-test requirements could be waived at certain venues for those who received a booster dose, according to Bavarian Health Minister Klaus Holczyk, who chaired the talks.
Some states already have such exceptions in place.
Test requirements must remain in place – even with a booster – for access to medical and care facilities, in order to protect vulnerable people.
Also on Tuesday, the influential leader of the southern German state of Bavaria called a meeting between the federal and state governments to discuss how to combat the spread of the Omicron variant.
“We need uniform national rules for Omicron,” Markus Soeder said in Munich.
If the summit can no longer be held before Christmas, Soweder said, it should take place “very early in January,” adding that Omicron is “certainly more contagious” than the Delta type of virus.
In Bavaria, there are currently 87 suspected cases and 39 confirmed cases of Omicron.
Regardless of Omicron’s concerns, the situation in Germany appears to have calmed somewhat in recent days.
The nationwide seven-day rate of coronavirus infection fell again on Tuesday, compared to the day before.
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for disease control reported 375 new infections per 100,000 population in the seven-day period through Tuesday, down from 389.2 through Monday. A week ago, the nationwide infection rate was 432.2.
Health authorities in Germany reported 30,823 new Covid-19 infections to the RKI within a day. Exactly a week ago, there were 36,059 cases.
According to the new data, 473 deaths were recorded in Germany within 24 hours. A week ago, there were 399 deaths.
The RKI has counted 6,562,429 confirmed cases of Covid-19 since the start of the pandemic. The actual total number is likely to be much higher, as many infections have not been detected.
HF