Because of the Omicron variant: Austria uses Corona

Austria has suspended the general corona vaccination that has been in force since the beginning of February.

The obligation to vaccinate everyone over the age of 18 is not proportionate in view of the currently predominant omicron variant of the corona virus, said Constitutional Minister Karoline Edtstadler on Wednesday in Vienna.

The measure will therefore be suspended in coordination with the Ministry of Health.

The new Minister of Health, Johannes Rauch, announced that in three months a decision should again be made on compulsory vaccination for all adults.

"Just like the virus is very mobile, we have to be flexible and adaptable," said Edtstadler.

With the decision to temporarily suspend compulsory vaccination, the government followed the recommendation of an expert commission.

When infected with the omicron variant, the disease progresses only mildly more often than with other virus variants.

Recently, the calls for a review of the general obligation to vaccinate in Austria have become louder, especially since the country has gradually removed most of its corona restrictions in recent weeks.

Tens of thousands of people have demonstrated regularly on weekends in recent months against compulsory vaccination.

Austria was one of the few countries in the world and the first EU country to put general corona vaccination into force on February 6th.

It applied to everyone over the age of 18.

The control of the vaccination requirement and the imposition of fines of up to 3600 euros should only begin in mid-March, which has now become obsolete.

Almost three million corona infections were detected in Austria by Tuesday.

More than 15,000 infected people have died in the country of nine million people since the beginning of the pandemic.

In Germany, too, a general obligation to vaccinate to contain the corona pandemic has been discussed for a long time.

The vote on this in the Bundestag should not take place until the beginning of April.

The first reading of group motions for compulsory vaccination has been set for March 17th.