German cabinet eases Covid-19 lockdown measures for those who’ve had their vaccine

Germany’s justice minister has announced that the government has signed off on a roadmap out of lockdown for citizens who’ve either been fully vaccinated or have recently recovered from the virus.

Minister Christine Lambrecht said the cabinet had agreed that those who had protection from the virus no longer needed to be subjected to the strict restrictions put in place to prevent a spike in infections. 

“If the risk of virus transmission is greatly reduced in fully vaccinated and recovered people, this must be taken into account in the measures,” the minister explained in a statement.

The decision will now head to the country’s parliament, where it must be passed by both houses. The changes are expected to come into effect within the week.

If the motion is approved by members of parliament, as anticipated, individuals who’ve been vaccinated or have recovered from the virus won’t be required to have a negative Covid-19 test result before they can take part in certain coronavirus-restricted activities, such as shopping or getting a haircut, and won’t have to observe the current curfew. However, all citizens will still be asked to follow social distancing measures, including wearing masks and maintaining space between themselves and others to further reduce transmission risk.

The government plunged the country into a lockdown toward the end of 2020 to curb rising infection rates, with the cabinet repeatedly opting to extend restrictions to prevent the healthcare system from being overwhelmed.

Since the start of the pandemic, Germany has recorded 3,425,982 cases of Covid, the 10th-highest globally, and 83,276 deaths from the virus. As of April 25, the country of 83 million had administered 25,489,567 doses of a vaccine, according to data provided to the World Health Organization.

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