Political parties in Germany are still advising the public to mask up in public to help prevent an increase in respiratory infections, Breitbart reported Monday.
Citing a report in the German Die Welt news outlet, Breitbart reported that politicians in both the Social Democratic Party of Germany and the Free Democratic Party advise citizens to wear masks in public places, restrictions put in place during the COVID-19 lockdowns in that country, to help prevent colds and flu.
According to the report, the parties want to “replicate” the reduction of spreading respiratory infections experienced during the lockdowns to slow an increase in colds and flu especially among children.
“The almost three years of the pandemic have been accompanied by a very low infection rate for respiratory diseases, “[Free Democratic Party] parliamentary group health spokesman Andrew Ullmann is quoted in the story. “Unfortunately, we are now in the situation where we are dealing with a high wave of infections, which is partly a consequence of the medical-immunological situation of the children. We can do acutely what we practiced well during the pandemic: avoid infections and interrupt chains of infection.”
In addition, he advised infected individuals to stay home, wash their hands.
Calling the influx of sick children with respiratory ailments in hospitals as “very worrying,” Social Democratic Party leader Dagmar Schmidt issued a statement agreeing with the other party’s guidance.
“Here, too, the basic hygiene measures protect, and everyone should now show solidarity, especially with the children,” the senior politician said in the story.
The Alternative for Germany Party, however, is blaming the previous lockdowns for the current spike in illness.
“Because the immune system of many children has not been sufficiently trained due to the corona contact restrictions, there are significantly more children who have to be hospitalized with serious respiratory diseases — not only the AfD parliamentary group, but also many experts warned of this at an early stage,” that party’s leader, Alice Weidel said in the report. “Because the traffic light introduced facility-related vaccination requirements, the already extreme staff shortage in nursing could only worsen to such an extent.”
Germany continues to mandate masks in public as part of the COVID-19 protocols and lockdowns during the pandemic, even though most of Europe has abandoned the mandates, the report said.
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