German Health Minister, Jens Spahn, has called on Germans to get vaccinated against influenza, in particularly this autumn.
Spahn said on Wednesday that the risk of a flu wave this year was higher.
“As a result of the partial lockdown and other public health measures taken against the coronavirus, there was virtually no flu in Germany last year,
“Please get vaccinated against flu, enough flu vaccine is available.
“More than enough, about 27 million doses of the flu vaccine is available this autumn in Germany.”
Spahn said the extra doses made it possible to avoid a lot of suffering and death.
He said flu vaccination was especially recommended for the elderly, people with pre-existing conditions and also advisable for people with many social contacts.
The minister said that his aim is to match last year’s vaccination rate, when 22 million flu vaccines were administered.
“Is a huge leap from this year’s figure, which is generally between 15 and 18 million people.”
He urged that social distance and hygiene rules including the wearing of masks should continue to be observed this winter, especially on public transport.
