Corona Measures - The Viennese Way
The City of Vienna intends to continue on the "Viennese Way of Safety" with a general FFP2 mask requirement and 2G rules for late-night bars and clubs. According to Mayor Ludwig, the low infection figures prove the effectiveness.
Corona Measures - The Viennese Way: Stricter Corona rules after October 31, such as the general FFP2 mask requirement in retail and public transport, and 2G rules for night bars and clubs. / Picture: © Magistrat der Stadt Wien / PID / David Bohmann
Vienna will maintain stricter Corona rules after October 31, such as the general FFP2 mask requirement in retail and public transport, and 2G rules for night bars and clubs.
The stricter Vienna 2.5G rule - i.e. access only for vaccinated persons or persons with PCR tests, will also remain.
This was announced by Vienna's mayor Michael Ludwig at a press conference in City Hall.
Earlier, the mayor had consulted with experts on the Corona situation.
"Vienna will continue to follow the path of safety in the interest of the health of the population," said Ludwig. While in other provinces the Corona figures are currently rising, the number of infections in Vienna is relatively stable - which is also due to the Viennese measures, he said. Ludwig also welcomed the introduction of 3G regulation in the workplace.
The Viennese mayor once again appealed for people to accept the offer of Corona vaccination. With the vaccination, the city now wants to increasingly target pregnant women and young women who want to have children. Many would hesitate with the vaccination, here it is important to educate about the risks of infection and the importance of vaccination, he said.
"I also invite everyone who has already been vaccinated to get a booster," Ludwig said. The vaccination's protection decreases over time, which is why the "third prick" booster is especially important, he said. In addition, the city of Vienna will offer the free flu shots starting Nov. 2. It is to be expected that influenza will "strike through" again stronger this year, warned the city chief: "Influenza vaccination can also be done in parallel with Covid vaccination. So Covid vaccination in the right arm and influenza vaccination in the left - and you have the vaccinations in one appointment behind you," advised Ludwig.
Vaccination and measures decisive for low infection figures
At the media briefing, Michael Binder, medical director of the Vienna Health Network and member of the mayor's expert panel, outlined the Covid situation in Europe and in Austria. "We are seeing an explosive increase in the number of infections in parts of Europe," Binder said. In Austria, too, case numbers were rising as rapidly as they had already in 2020, he said, but the number of vaccinations was making a difference. In Europe, a "north-west" and "south-east" divide can be observed. The number of cases in countries with good vaccination coverage, such as Portugal, France or Italy, would only increase to a lesser extent than in countries with low vaccination coverage, such as the countries in Eastern Europe - including many of Austria's neighbors.
A correlation between vaccination rates and corona figures can also be seen in Austria: "Federal states with low vaccination rates, such as Upper Austria or parts of Salzburg, are much worse in terms of incidence. So the correlation is clear," the physician explained.
Thanks to the measures taken, Vienna is in a good position in an Austrian comparison. Model calculations show that it is necessary to maintain the measures, also in order to maintain the still low utilization of hospital beds with Covid patients.