Dec 2, 2021 - World

Germany approves new restrictions for unvaccinated people

Oriana González

Picture of Angela Merkel — Photo: John MacDougall - Pool/Getty Images

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said Thursday that people who are unvaccinated will not be allowed in nonessential shops, cultural and recreational venues, AP reports.

State of play: Merkel, alongside incoming Chancellor Olaf Scholz, said the measures were necessary to avoid overflowing hospitals with coronavirus patients. The country is seeing an increase in daily infections.

Merkel said unvaccinated individuals won't be allowed to go into all businesses except essential ones like grocery stores and pharmacies.
Germany is also considering a national vaccine mandate that would go into effect in February 2022, Merkel added.

By the numbers: Since the beginning of the pandemic, Germany has recorded 5,977,208 confirmed coronavirus cases and 102,178 deaths.

On Thursday, 73,209 new cases were recorded, compared to the 67,186 new cases reported Wednesday.

What she's saying: "The situation in our country is serious with regard to the COVID-19 pandemic. We are reaching the limits of the response capacity in our hospitals," Merkel said, according to a translation from DW News.

She said the restrictive measures are an "act of national solidarity so that we can reduce the rate of infections and ease the burden on our public health systems."

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Germany approves new restrictions for unvaccinated people

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