Sunday, December 5th, 2021
Traffic light bill
Closing of the catering should be possible
The traffic light parties want to enable the federal states to close catering establishments in the fight against the pandemic. A corresponding bill also provides for mandatory vaccination in nursing from March 16. In the future, dentists, veterinarians and pharmacists should also be allowed to vaccinate.
The traffic light parties SPD, Greens and FDP want to enable the closure of restaurants and leisure facilities, especially those federal states affected by the corona pandemic. In addition, they are planning a corona vaccination obligation for staff in facilities for particularly vulnerable people from March 16. This is based on a draft to amend the Infection Protection Act, which is to be discussed in the Bundestag next week.
In the amended Paragraph 28a, the draft states that the closure of businesses, businesses, retail and wholesale businesses will continue to be prohibited “unless they are catering facilities, leisure or cultural facilities or trade fairs or congresses”. Several federal states had demanded that they should also be able to close restaurants. According to the traffic light draft, the precondition for the application of the strict measures is that the state parliaments of the respective countries resolve this beforehand.
In addition, the SPD, Greens and FDP want to implement the federal-state demand for partial vaccination. “To protect public health and vulnerable groups of people from COVID-19 disease, it is stipulated that people working in certain facilities and companies must be vaccinated or recovered or have a medical certificate stating that there is a contraindication to vaccination against COVID-19.” According to the draft.
Employees who are already employed must submit proof of this by March 15. “From March 16, 2022, new employment relationships can only be entered into if appropriate evidence is presented,” it says. The regulation is intended to apply to staff in nursing homes and old people’s homes, hospitals and maternity facilities, medical and dental practices, as well as emergency services and day clinics. The reason that the regulation is only to apply from mid-March is that unvaccinated staff should have the opportunity to be fully vaccinated beforehand.
Bundestag deliberates next week
The reason for the partial vaccination requirement is referred to the high number of deaths and serious illnesses in nursing and old people’s homes. In order to avoid entry and spread of the virus there, the staff working there in particular should be fully vaccinated, it is said.
In the draft, the transition period for particularly drastic corona measures, which the traffic light parties had abolished with the previous Infection Protection Act and the expiry of the epidemic situation of national scope, will be extended from December 15 to February 15, 2022. The federal states had just requested this for regions with particularly high numbers of corona infections.
In order to further accelerate the vaccination campaign, “dentists, veterinarians and pharmacists” should also be temporarily allowed to vaccinate. But you need to have been trained accordingly.
The Infection Protection Act is to be discussed and passed in the Bundestag in the coming days and also to be passed by the Bundesrat before December 15. A majority in both chambers is considered certain despite the vote without a parliamentary group, because the majority of the future opposition CDU / CSU should also agree to this partial vaccination requirement.