Courtesy Translation: Health Minister Clemens Hoch: Mask obligation in the medical sector, in care facilities and in public transport remains as of right now, but no hotspot regulation for Rheinland-Pfalz

Courtesy Photo | Rheinland Pfalz crest to use with courtesy translations  

WIESBADEN, HE, GERMANY

03.31.2022

Story by Nadine Bower 

U.S. Army Garrison Wiesbaden   

Press Release from the State Government of Rheinland-Pfalz; from 29 MAR 2022
Courtesy Translation: Nadine Bower, Public Affairs Specialist

Health Minister Clemens Hoch: Mask obligation in the medical sector, in care facilities and in public transport remains as of right now, but no hotspot regulation for Rheinland-Pfalz

Possibility of work quarantine introduced

There will be no hotspot regulation in Rheinland-Pfalz after April 2. This was decided by the Rheinland-Pfalz Council of Ministers at its meeting today. The background to this is the amendment to the Infection Protection Act adopted by the Federal Cabinet. After that, most mandatory corona rules are omitted. However, the basic protective measures such as the mask requirement in hospitals, in doctors' offices, in care facilities or in public transport remain.

In order for the state parliaments to be able to change the current regulations, there would have to be a concrete danger of an overload of the health system. "This is not yet the case with regard to the burden of disease in our state; however, the situation in our hospitals is more serious than it ever was, especially with regard to the loss of employees," said Health Minister Clemens Hoch. However, the federal law deprives the German Federal States of any possibility of flexible protective measures.

"The infection process remains dynamic. The number of cases remains at the highest level. Nevertheless, a real illness-related emergency has not yet occurred. It is true that many patients are currently being treated in hospitals. However, many of them are not in the hospitals not because of Corona, but with Corona. The burden of disease is still significantly higher in the unvaccinated than in the vaccinated. In addition, there is a high level of sick leave among the hospital staff. This remains a dramatic burden in the facilities, but is also due to the fact that the mandatory periods for quarantine have to be observed," said Health Minister Clemens Hoch. In yesterday's Health Ministers' Conference, the federal government announced that it would adapt the segregation regulations and create a relief here. Rheinland-Pfalz had expressed the expectation that nationwide uniform statements would be made so that people with an asymptomatic infection would no longer have to go into isolation. Until then, Rheinland-Pfalz will adapt what the state can regulate itself, subject to further changes by the Federal Ministry of Health and the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) with its own quarantine ordinance, according to the minister. "Our goal is to find a way to deal with the virus, and move in a direction that people with symptoms avoid encounters as much as possible and those who are symptom-free can return to work," said Clemens Hoch. To this end, we will enable a so-called work quarantine in Rheinland-Pfalz. This work quarantine can be agreed upon by employees and employers. Strict measures such as an FFP2 mask requirement apply. Contacts shall be kept to a minimum. In addition, it makes it easier to ensure the care of infected patients by infected but not sick staff. A previously required approval by the health authorities will also be omitted.

For the schools, Minister of Education Dr. Stefanie Hubig announced the following regulations: "Starting Apr. 4, there will be a test offer for school students and school staff twice a week without cause. Even after the Easter school break, this regulation will continue for one week. We will decide on what happens after according to the overall situation. We will inform at an early stage. It remains the requirement that a learning group has to test for five consecutive school days after the occurrence of an infection. The event-related test obligation will also be continued in the area of day-care centers. This means that after an infection there, all contact persons have to quarantine. The affected children and the employees can only return to the daycare center if they have been tested with a rapid PoC antigen test by a certified testing site or have quarantined for ten days."

With the expiry of the previous measures, masks will only be required where vulnerable groups need special protection. The mask requirement in the retail trade is dropped. "Not only is everyone free to wear a mask wherever people come into contact with each other, but in the current situation it is even urgently necessary where people meet spontaneously or do not know each other. Protecting oneself and others remains very important and now lies even more in the personal responsibility of each individual. Masks remain a good means of curbing the spread of viral diseases. I am sure that we have adapted well to this form of protection for future waves of diseases. It is advisable that we continue to practice what we have learned," the Minister of Health appealed.

Source: https://mwg.rlp.de/de/service/pressemitteilungen/detail/news/News/detail/gesundheitsminister-clemens-hoch-maskenpflicht-im-medizinischen-bereich-in-pflegeeinrichtungen-und/

• Date Taken: 03.31.2022
• Date Posted: 03.31.2022 02:53
• Story ID: 417539
• Location: WIESBADEN, HE, DE