German health authorities say outbreak is now ‘manageable’

GERMANY has achieved one of its key targets in making the outbreak in the country “manageable”, health authorities announced yesterday.

The spread has slowed to the point where those infected pass it on to a number averaging under one person.

The reproduction factor, or R0, is 0.7 in Germany, meaning every 10 people with the virus infect on average just seven others. That compares with an estimated German R0 of 3-4 at the start of the outbreak in March, meaning its healthcare system can start to return to a normal footing in May, according to Jens Spahn, the health minister.

“The outbreak is becoming more manageable every day. There are now more people who have recovered than those newly infected,” he said in Berlin.

A total of 4,105 people have died in the country, in 138,369 recorded cases. Angela Merkel, the chancellor, this week identified the reproduction factor as a key measurement of when lockdown measures can be lifted, and German scientists declared lowering it to under one was a major target in bringing the outbreak under control.

Prof Lothar Wieler, head of the government-funded Robert Koch Institute, said: “The strategy we’ve pursued is showing success.” But he warned it remained to be seen whether the reduction rate was sustainable. “We survived the first wave well, but we mustn’t overplay this achievement,” he added. “The goal is to keep it below one.”

The announcement came as Germany prepared to begin gradually lifting lockdown measures, with many shops due to reopen from Monday.

♦ Jena, the only city in Germany to make face masks compulsory, has recorded no new coronavirus infections in eight days, raising hopes they could be an effective weapon against the virus. It has 155 recorded infections but has seen no new cases since last Thursday. Germany has carried out more testing than anywhere else in Europe, with more than 1.73million so far.