Germany's New COVID-19 Cases Near Record 40,000... "Concern Over Additional 100,000 Deaths"

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[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] In Germany, as the spread of COVID-19 has broken the record for the highest number of cases for the third consecutive day, pessimistic forecasts are emerging that if strong quarantine measures are not implemented, an additional 100,000 deaths could occur.

According to the Robert Koch Institute (RKI), Germany's equivalent of the disease control agency, on the 10th (local time), the number of new COVID-19 cases in Germany the previous day was 39,676, the highest since the pandemic began. The daily death toll also reached 236.

Over the past week, the cumulative number of COVID-19 cases per 100,000 people was 232.1, surpassing the previous highest record of 213.7 set the day before, marking the third consecutive day of record-breaking highs. Germany's cumulative death toll stands at 96,963. The number of hospitalizations per 100,000 people over the past week also increased to 4.31. As a result, hospitals at all levels are postponing surgeries that can be delayed to focus on caring for COVID-19 patients.

Christian Drosten, an infectious disease specialist at Charit? Hospital, Germany's largest university hospital in Berlin, warned, "If strong contact restriction measures that do not exclude re-lockdown are not implemented immediately, an additional 100,000 deaths could occur." He also emphasized, "The third vaccination dose is essential."

Germany's COVID-19 first-dose vaccination rate has remained stagnant in the 60% range for three months. The number of people who have received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in Germany is 58.04 million, accounting for 69.8% of the total population, and 55.93 million people, or 67.3%, have completed the second dose. Only 3.04 million people have received the booster shot.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.