Berlin – Germany expects the Delta variant of COVID-19 to account for up to 80% of infections this month and could ease travel restrictions from nations like Portugal and Britain the place it already dominates, its health minister mentioned on Thursday.
Jens Spahn informed a news conference that Germany could reduce the current 14-day quarantine requirement that it imposes on travelers from nations with high levels of the Delta variant once it’s sure that vaccinated individuals are protected.
Spahn mentioned the move may happen soon, without specifying.
Germany’s STIKO vaccination commission mentioned later on Thursday that UK studies show that two vaccines doses seem to provide as much protection against the Delta variant as against other COVID-19 variants.
Spahn reiterated the importance of speeding up vaccinations, noting that 37% of Germany’s population has now received two shots, whereas 55% has had the first dose.
About half of German coronavirus cases are currently Delta variant and Spahn mentioned it will dominate later this month.
Germany last week declared Portugal and Russia to be “virus-variant zones”, meaning only German residents can enter the nation from those nations and still face a mandatory two-week quarantine even if they’re fully vaccinated or test negative.
That had prompted German tourists there to rush home and airlines to cancel flights.
Germany also classifies Britain as such a “virus variant” zone. Chancellor Angela Merkel is due to discuss travel restrictions when she meets British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Friday.
Spahn suggested these nations could be shifted to a designation as risk areas, meaning individuals can travel if they are fully vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19, or be released from quarantine after 5 days if they test negative.
The European Commission mentioned on Tuesday that Germany should not impose a travel ban on Portugal but limit itself to imposing testing and quarantine requirements to be in line with the European Union approach meant to ease the summer travel.
Courtesy: Reuters
