Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Germany - statistics & facts
The coronavirus (COVID-19) has defined the 2020s on a global scale. COVID-19 is the official name for the coronavirus disease, with the first confirmed cases recorded in the Chinese city of Wuhan, located in the Hubei province, in November 2019. The respiratory disease is caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. This is a new virus not identified in humans before, which means that treatment had not been available at the beginning of the outbreak. The World Health Organisation (WHO) officially declared the coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak a pandemic on March 11, 2020. After months of research, the BioNTech-Pfizer vaccine, a joint effort between Germany and the U.S., was approved by the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and the European Commission on December 21, 2020, with German vaccinations starting shortly after Christmas.
The German government-imposed measures such as social distancing. Daycare facilities, schools, and universities were successively closed around the country, as were gyms, museums, theaters, clubs, bars, restaurants, libraries, cinemas, shops, and stores. During April and May 2020, as the German government began easing shutdown measures, decisions were also handed down to individual state governments, with numerous establishments reopening. Social distancing and wearing protective masks continued to accompany daily life outside of the home. Germany has repeated lockdown measures after infection rates began to rise in autumn and throughout winter 2020.
Now the majority of the German population has received at least two doses if not three of the COVID-19 vaccine. Although this does not mean people will not become infected with the virus, it severely reduces the risk of developing more dangerous symptoms and having to be hospitalized, meaning the pressure on hospitals has been eased significantly. This has meant that life for most people has gone back to the way it was pre-pandemic. Restaurants and shops are open, most with no social distancing measures, and on February 1, 2023, the final protective measure, wearing masks on public transport, was also lifted.
The German government-imposed measures such as social distancing. Daycare facilities, schools, and universities were successively closed around the country, as were gyms, museums, theaters, clubs, bars, restaurants, libraries, cinemas, shops, and stores. During April and May 2020, as the German government began easing shutdown measures, decisions were also handed down to individual state governments, with numerous establishments reopening. Social distancing and wearing protective masks continued to accompany daily life outside of the home. Germany has repeated lockdown measures after infection rates began to rise in autumn and throughout winter 2020.
Now the majority of the German population has received at least two doses if not three of the COVID-19 vaccine. Although this does not mean people will not become infected with the virus, it severely reduces the risk of developing more dangerous symptoms and having to be hospitalized, meaning the pressure on hospitals has been eased significantly. This has meant that life for most people has gone back to the way it was pre-pandemic. Restaurants and shops are open, most with no social distancing measures, and on February 1, 2023, the final protective measure, wearing masks on public transport, was also lifted.
