Get Covid vaccines now to be safer on Christmas, German minister says

People with high risk factors should get vaccinated against Covid-19 as soon as infection rates rise, Germany's health minister said on Monday.

An infection is not a simple cold, said the minister, Karl Lauterbach, and elderly Germans or those with chronic health issues should get the protection of a vaccine or booster shot.

Now is "the optimal time" for vaccines to take full effect before the Christmas holidays, said Lauterbach. The holidays often bring large social gatherings and travel, which experts note carry heightened risks of infections.

Lauterbach called it disappointing that only 3 million people so far have gotten newly adapted booster shots designed to fight the current coronavirus variants.

Lauterbach made it clear that a wave of infections can be identified from calculations based on available data.

In Germany, there is an estimated incidence of 1,700 new infections per 100,000 inhabitants in seven days, Lauterbach said on Monday, following roundtable meetings about long-term effects from Covid-19 infections.

Lars Schaade, the leader of Germany's public health agency, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), said that the current level of infections has a different meaning than during the height of the pandemic in view of the population's higher basic immunity due to vaccinations and prior infections.