Should the quarantine obligation be lifted in the event of a corona infection? Experts sometimes have very different opinions. What are the pros and cons – and what actually applies at the moment?
Berlin – “Infected people have to stay at home”. The workplace must not become a “security risk”. Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach (SPD) is still not deviating from his cautious course in the fight against the corona virus. In contrast to some of his medical colleagues in recent times, who have taken a more open course in dealing with the virus. Lauterbach thinks little of the recent advances by the chairman of the board of directors of the National Association of Statutory Health Insurance Physicians, Andreas Gassen.
Gassen: Omicron is “almost an offer of peace from the virus”. The obligation to isolate can be lifted.
Be in Gassen’s eyes die Omikron-Variante “Almost a peace offer from the virus”, so he thinks it is justifiable to lift the obligation to isolate in order to alleviate the staff shortage that prevails in many places. Anyone who becomes infected after a triple vaccination “even benefits from an infection by acquiring mucosal immunity,” he told the newspaper on Saturday, July 23 Neuen Osnabrücker Zeitung.
It’s high time for him to get back to normal. “Anyone who is sick stays at home. Anyone who feels healthy goes to work. We do the same with other infectious diseases such as the flu.” Gassen admitted, however, that the number of infections had been very high for months and that there was a high number of unreported cases due to the discontinuation of free citizen tests. However, the courses are almost always mild.
Corona quarantine: Obligation to isolate leads to staff shortages in clinics
He sees the bigger problem than the high number of cases in the fact that even people without symptoms would have to isolate themselves at home for several days, which would lead to large staff shortages. He explicitly refers to the clinics. Gassen received a lot of criticism for his proposal, but also received encouragement.
The FDP health expert Andrew Ullmann shares Gassen’s view. “This is a solution-oriented approach,” he told the newspaper on Saturday German Press Agency (dpa). “The isolation period for patients with Covid-19 should no longer be fixed by the state. In this way we can return to a certain normality and calmness. ”According to Ullmann, the question of the isolation time should be an individual decision.
Lindner: Corona measures must “leave as much personal responsibility as possible to people”
FDP leader Christian Lindner spoke to the newspapers of the Funk media group similarly expressed in another context and advocated individual freedom of choice. Future Corona measures about which Ministry of Health and Justice currently being discussedshould “leave as much personal responsibility as possible to people”, reports kreiszeitung.de.
Bavaria’s Health Minister Klaus Holetschek (CSU), however, criticized that the proposal came at the wrong time. “We are in a highly dynamic infection situation. We expect a further increase in the number of infections in autumn.” He therefore thinks it makes little sense to relax the rules on isolation now.
The board of directors of the German Foundation for Patient Protection, Eugen Brysch, sees it similarly. He accused Gassen of “opportunism”. The isolation is a good protection – it prevents people from getting infected. He also referred to the risk that those infected could contract Long and Post Covid, which is also possible after mild courses, as often occur with Omicron.
Corona summer wave “not yet broken”. Infection numbers continue to rise. Older people are particularly affected.
Andreas Gassner is not the only one with his suggestion, but his course is largely the exception. With a view to the current incidence values, most experts are not giving the all-clear. “The wave hasn’t broken yet,” says Ulf Dittmer, head of the Institute for Virology at the University Hospital Essen, in an interview with the dpa. The number of cases is currently climbing despite high summer temperatures.
The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) writes in its weekly report that “particularly the age groups from 70 years” are affected. Relaxing the obligation to isolate could also have dramatic effects for old people’s and nursing homes. If employees return to work too early, there could be more outbreaks among the residents, who belong to the very sensitive group due to age and previous illnesses.
But is that already a problem? Which rules for isolation actually apply in the case of a corona infection at the moment?
Corona: quarantine or isolation? What if the test is positive?
First of all: Corona measures are a matter for the federal states. There are therefore no general protection rules for the whole of Germany. The federal states decide individually on the specific design of the individual measures with a view to the regional infection process.
However, the federal government has issued a joint recommendation for the quarantine and isolation rules, which is also implemented by the federal states. On May 2, 2022, the isolation requirement was shortened. But quarantine and isolation are not the same:
In quarantine should go people who are suspected of having a corona infection, i.e. if they have previously had contact with an infected person or if they are returning from a trip from a virus variant area.
Isolation This is necessary if infection with the corona virus has been proven using a rapid antigen test or a PCR test.
If it is clear that you have been infected with the virus, there is currently an obligation to isolate yourself at home. Important: Even fully vaccinated people who have tested positive and have no symptoms must go into isolation. Visits from people who do not belong to your own household are not allowed.
Five days after the first positive test result According to the Ministry of Health, the isolation ends. However, it is strongly recommended to continue self-isolation after the fifth day until a negative test result is obtained.
Isolation for health care workers may be longer depending on the course – a negative test must first be available.
For people who work in the healthcare sector or in nursing, the following generally applies: Only after a negative rapid or PCR test may the activity be resumed. However, the prerequisite is that they have been symptom-free for at least 48 hours beforehand.
The Ministry of Health justifies the shortening of the isolation with the fact that, according to studies, the time in which an infected person is contagious is significantly shorter with Omikron than with the predecessor variants, such as Delta.
However, opinions among experts about the duration of the risk of infection from Omikron differ, as fr.de reported. Studies indicate that incifiers can pass on the virus later than five days. It is therefore appropriate that sick people continue to test themselves after the prescribed five days of isolation and only go out with people again if the result is negative – on their own responsibility and to protect others.