The spread of the even more easily transmissible omicron subtype BA.2 has continued in Germany. According to the most recent data available for the week before last (week 10), their share in a sample was around 72 percent, down from around 64 percent previously, as can be seen from the weekly report by the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) on Thursday evening. Currently, the variant is likely to have an even larger share in the infection process, while the role of the previously dominant omicron subline BA.1 is becoming smaller and smaller.
According to the RKI, more than 1.5 million corona cases were reported in Germany for the first time in the past calendar week. BA.2 is considered a driver of the current infection process, in addition to easing and changes in behavior among the population, as the authors of the report suspect. They emphasized how important it is that the population continues to behave prudently – and once again underlined the benefits of the corona vaccination. “Due to its high effectiveness against a severe course, the vaccination has not lost its importance even in diseases caused by the omicron variant,” says the report.
The RKI puts the estimated effectiveness of the booster vaccination in terms of hospital admission for people aged 60 and over who are considered particularly at risk at 87 percent. With only one basic immunization, it is 75 percent in this age group. The institute added on Twitter that the complete vaccination and especially the booster protected very well against severe disease and death. In addition, the severity of the disease is generally lower in the event of an infection after vaccination.
In particular, risk groups and people over the age of 70 called on the RKI to protect themselves against a serious illness with a second booster vaccination, as recommended by the Standing Vaccination Committee. Around 1.67 million people have used it so far, according to the report.