“The best way out of the dilemma”
Merz for mandatory vaccination in the next wave
02/01/2022 10:37 am
Is vaccination coming? CDU boss Merz considers a staggered variant for certain age groups to be useful. However, the rule should only take effect with the next wave – “maybe in August, September, October”.
The new CDU leader Friedrich Merz has outlined the Union’s plans for a possible compulsory vaccination. He could imagine a staggered vaccination requirement from the age of 50, Merz told the “Welt”. However, this should only apply to a possible new wave of infections and, if necessary, be activated with another Bundestag resolution. Merz wants to present a key issues paper on the union proposal in the next week of the Bundestag session. This will take place from February 14th to 18th.
“We are not talking about compulsory vaccination that we will introduce tomorrow to break the current wave,” said Merz. Rather, it is about compulsory vaccination “for which the conditions are created”. The aim is a legal basis on the basis of which compulsory vaccination can then be introduced if necessary. It’s about saying “maybe in August, September, October”, “those over 50, over 60, over 70 now have an obligation in this situation (…) to get vaccinated “, explained Merz. From his point of view, this variant is “the best way to get out of this dilemma”.
Merz thinks it is probably necessary to introduce a vaccination register for implementation. The traffic light coalition wants to have the general corona vaccination requirement, also advocated by Chancellor Olaf Scholz (SPD), decided in the form of competing group applications in the Bundestag. There should not be a government draft, which is met with criticism from the Union. So far, MPs have been considering three models: compulsory vaccination for everyone over the age of 18, a requirement only for people over the age of 50 and the rejection of compulsory vaccination.