Corona crisis: Merkel announces drastic measures
Christiane Fux studied journalism and psychology in Hamburg. The experienced medical editor has been writing magazine articles, news and factual texts on all conceivable health topics since 2001. In addition to her work for, Christiane Fux is also active in prose. Her first crime novel was published in 2012, and she also writes, designs and publishes her own crime plays.
More posts by Christiane Fux All content is checked by medical journalists.The federal and state governments have agreed on a drastic package of measures to contain the corona virus. Chancellor Angela Merkel presented it on Monday evening.
Severely restrict social contacts
In order to slow the spread of the virus, social contacts in Germany should be kept as low as possible. "This is the most effective measure to reduce the number of illnesses and thus also serious illnesses," said Merkel.
You hope that people will understand. For example, it makes no sense to close a school if the same students then meet elsewhere. "The faster we get through this phase, the more each individual adheres to these conditions and to these regulations."
What remains open
All shops that serve to supply the population remain open. The supply of the population is not endangered by hamster purchases despite temporarily empty shelves. The shop opening hours are even to be extended, the sales ban on Sundays suspended.
The openings should be made while observing hygiene measures. Queuing should be prevented as much as possible. That applies to
- Supermarkets
- Drugstores
- Pharmacies
- Weekly markets
- Beverage markets
- Delivery services
- Services by craftsmen and other service providers
- Medical supply stores
- Banks, savings banks
- Post offices
- Garden centers
- Pet supplies markets
- Gas stations
- Hairdressers
- Dry cleaners, laundromats
- Wholesale
What will be closed
- Shops other than those mentioned above
- Bars, pubs, clubs, discos
- playgrounds
- Theaters, operas, concert halls
- Museums, exhibitions
- Measure
- Cinemas
- Leisure and animal parks
- Amusement arcades, casinos
- Brothels
- Sports facilities (swimming pools, fitness studios, etc.)
- Outlets
Further regulations
Restaurants
Restaurants and pubs should open at 6 a.m. at the earliest and close at 6 p.m. at the latest. Distance rules for the tables and hygiene measures are to be observed.
Associations, educational offers
Meetings in clubs as well as sports and leisure facilities are prohibited, as are offers from music schools, adult education centers and other public and private educational institutions.
Churches, synagogues, mosques
Religious gatherings in churches, synagogues and mosques and other religious institutions are prohibited until further notice.
Visiting regulations for hospitals, care facilities, etc.
To protect particularly vulnerable people, visiting regulations should be issued for hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation facilities and special residential homes. The visit should z. B. be limited to one hour a day, said Merkel. For the time being, there should be no visits from children under 16 years of age and, above all, no visits from people with respiratory infections.
school closings
Tens of thousands of schools and daycare centers will remain closed until the end of the Easter holidays, i.e. until the middle or end of April. However, outside of the holidays, lessons should continue at home with the help of worksheets and video colleges. There are 2.8 million primary school students across Germany. 3.7 million children are cared for in day care centers and after-school facilities.
No vacation trips
In order to contain the corona virus, the Germans should no longer take vacation trips at home or abroad, said the Chancellor. The federal and state governments have therefore decided that overnight stays in hotels throughout Germany should only be used for necessary “and expressly not for tourist purposes”. Several tour operators, including industry leader TUI, canceled trips. Some airlines are ceasing to operate for the time being. The German islands in the North and Baltic Seas are already closed to tourists.
Entry and exit bans
Germany has already closed the borders with Austria, France, Luxembourg and Denmark as well as Switzerland to private traffic. The movement of goods and commuters are not affected. A 30-day entry ban for the entire European Union is also planned. In addition to all EU citizens and their relatives, people with permanent residence permits, diplomats, doctors, nurses, researchers and experts, said EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday.
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