Virologist on lockdown: Corona targets are “illusory”

A well-known virologist believes the federal government’s goals in fighting pandemics are too ambitious. A distinction must be made between what is desirable and what can actually be achieved. GIGA reveals what is feasible for the expert.

No sooner has the lockdown been extended until the end of January 2021 than criticism has been raised from various quarters. Contacts must be reduced, and the measures are fundamentally correct, says a well-known virologist. On the other hand, he criticizes the proportionality of infection protection and the effects on the economy and society.

Corona: Virologist considers incidence of 50 to be exaggerated

It is undisputed that from a certain incidence, contact with other people has to be reduced, says virologist Klaus Stöhr in an interview with the daily topics on ARD. What is disputed, however, is “from which incidence one has to act.” The researcher, who warned about avian flu at an early stage and worked in various positions for the WHO, considers the 50 limit that the government is aiming for as “desirable but illusory “- especially in winter. It is set too low. This is also shown by a comparison with other countries that introduced tough lockdown measures before Germany.

He considers the goal of a 50s incidence to be excessive for another reason: The German health system has not been overloaded in the past few weeks. There are individual hospitals in which the situation is very serious. Usually, however, sufficient capacities are available – and that with incidences of 100 to 120 on site.

This is how the corona test works at home:

Finding a compromise for business and society

“A better, more balanced compromise needs to be found to reduce the effects of the disease, the economic effects; but also not to further restrict the freedom rights, ”said Stöhr den Daily Topics. As the reason for the disagreement as to which path is the right one, he cited that “there are still no good, reliable data.”

The new rules also include restrictions on movement around one’s own residence – at least in hotspots. You can see here how you can easily display the range of motion on your mobile phone. Other experts, however, criticize the idea of ​​postponing the second vaccination – a possible additional measure to address the shortage of available vaccines.