The president of the German Medical Association, Klaus Reinhardt, called on Sunday (11/07) for the reintroduction of free coronavirus tests in the country, at a time when infection rates are breaking records in the country.
Free rapid tests, which served as a pass for most enclosed public spaces, were canceled on October 11 in an effort to encourage vaccination in Germany. Less than a month later, the strategy’s effectiveness is called into question.
“It is clear that defunding the cost of coronavirus testing did not spur refractory vaccinations,” Reinhardt told Funk Media Group, adding that federal and state officials should quickly correct this “mistake.”
Infection levels as of December 2020
A third of Germany’s population still does not have a complete vaccination schedule against the Corona virus. Proposals to make vaccination compulsory have met with resistance from officials such as Health Minister Jens Spahn, although opinion polls indicate that a majority of the population will support.
Klaus Reinhardt also advocates expanding the rule that allows only those who have been vaccinated or have recovered from COVID-19 to access restaurants, bars, cinemas and other public places. Leaders such as the rulers of Bavaria, Marcus Söder, and the rulers of North Rhine-Westphalia, Hendrik Fust, were also pushing for a return to free testing.
With the approach of the cold season, infections with the SARS-CoV-2 virus are gradually increasing in Germany. On Sunday, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), the German government agency for disease control and prevention, recorded 23,543 new cases.
The seven-day infection rate rose to 191.5 new infections per 100,000 population, as December 2020 numbers approached, before vaccines became widely available.
By (Reuters, AP, EFE)
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
Pfizer-Biontech (BNT162b2)
Developed by German Biotech and produced by American Pfizer, it is a messenger RNA (mRNA) vaccine. Its principle is to make the body itself produce the protein of the virus. After the substance is injected into the human body, it instructs the body to produce a protein, which encourages the manufacture of antibodies against the Cov-2 virus. The product requires the application of two doses.
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
AstraZeneca (AZD1222 ou ChAdOx1 nCoV-19)
The technology used is called a recombinant viral vector, which uses adenoviruses that are unable to cause disease. In the human body, the vaccine encourages the production of the coronavirus protein, which the immune system considers a threat and destroys it. When Sars-Cov-2 actually infects the body, the body recognizes and fights the virus. Two doses are needed.
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
Modern (mRNA-1273)
It also uses messenger RNA technology, which mimics the spiky protein of Sars-CoV-2, which helps invade human cells. The copy is not as harmful as the virus, but it provokes a reaction in the cells of the immune system. It should also be applied in two doses. Like all covid-19 vaccines, it is given as an intramuscular injection.
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
Jansen, D.A. Johnson & Johnson (Ad26.COV2-S)
This Janssen pharmaceutical product requires only one dose application. Its technology is based on carriers of a type of virus that causes the common cold. In a vaccine, a portion of the virus’s spike protein is placed on the adenovirus (which is the vector). In the vaccinated body, the defense process begins, with the production of antibodies against the invader and the creation of a “memory” against the virus.
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
Sputnik V (Gam-COVID-Vac)
From the Russian Aesthetic Lab, it’s a vector viral vaccine that uses other viruses that have been manipulated to be harmless to the organism, but can induce anti-Covid-19. When injected into the body, it enters cells and causes them to produce and display this protein. This alerts and triggers the immune system. Sputnik uses different adenoviruses in the first and second doses to boost the immune response.
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The main vaccines against COVID-19
SinoVac (Corona Vac)
Sinovac Chinese Pharmaceutical Vaccine is manufactured in Brazil by the Putantan Institute. Its technology is based on in vitro manipulation of human cells infected with Sars-Cov-2. The vaccine is produced with inactivated fragments of the virus, that is, it cannot reproduce by itself. After receiving the dose, the immune system begins to produce antibodies to fight SARS-CoV-2.
Author: Roselaine Wandscheer
By Andrea Hargraves 
