At the gates of a fourth wave of coronavirus on Germany, the European country’s Health Minister issued a harsh warning on Monday.
“By the end of this winter, everyone in Germany will be vaccinated, recovered or dead,” Jens Spahn told a news conference in Berlin.
Cases in the European country have increased rapidly in recent weeks and many hospitals are running out of free beds, according to the BBC.
The country’s vaccination rate is one of the lowest in Western Europe: only 68% of people have their full COVID-19 scheme.
The infection rate is at its highest level since the pandemic began. Health experts warned that this wave could be the worst.
“Moral obligation”
In the last 24 hours, Germany accumulates 30,643 new infections, almost 7,000 more than a week ago. It is one of the highest rates in the world.
The government will impose stricter restrictions that will exclude the unvaccinated from certain locations. Some of Germany’s famous Christmas markets have also been canceled.
Spahn said he was against Covid-19 vaccines being mandatory, but considers it a “moral obligation” to receive them because of the impact they have on other people.
“Freedom means taking responsibility and society has a duty to get vaccinated,” he said.
The delta variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus is driving the latest wave, the minister explained.
“Anyone who is not vaccinated will become infected in the coming months and will lack protection,” he warned.
Since the start of the pandemic, more than 99,000 people have died in Germany and more than 5.4 million have been infected with covid-19.
Other European countries have had a sharp increase in infections, such as Austria, which ordered strict confinement for unvaccinated people.
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