Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

The Latest: 4 million cases in Germany since pandemic began

The German disease control agency says that more than 4 million people have contracted the coronavirus in the country since the outbreak of the pandemic

Via AP news wire
Sunday 05 September 2021 10:44 BST
Virus Outbreak Germany
Virus Outbreak Germany (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

BERLIN ā€” The German disease control agency says that more than 4 million people have contracted the coronavirus in the country since the outbreak of the pandemic.

The Robert Koch Institute reported 4,005,641 cases on Sunday. The actual number of cases is likely much higher as many infections go unnoticed. The institute said 92,346 people have died of COVID-19 in Germany

Top health officials have urged more citizens to get vaccinated.

More than 61% of the German population, or 50.9 million people, are fully vaccinated, but thatā€™s less than in other European countries. The daily vaccination rate has been dropping for weeks.

Germanyā€™s disease control agency on Saturday reported 10,835 new COVID-19 cases. That's up from 10,303 a week ago.

___

MORE ON THE PANDEMIC:

ā€” Germany urges vaccine shots; warns of fall COVID-19 surge

ā€” Florida deals with deadliest phase yet of the pandemic

___

ā€” Find more AP coverage at https://apnews.com/hub/coronavirus-pandemic and https://apnews.com/hub/coronvirus-vaccine

___

HEREā€™S WHAT ELSE IS HAPPENING:

OLYMPIA, Washington ā€” Days after suing to block what is believed to be among the nationā€™s strictest COVID-19 employee vaccine mandates, Washingtonā€™s largest state labor union has announced a tentative agreement for Gov. Jay Insleeā€™s order for state workers.

The Northwest News Network reports the Washington Federation of State Employees has negotiated terms for Insleeā€™s mandate that all 46,000 of its union members be fully vaccinated by October 18 or lose their jobs.

The new agreement, which still needs to be ratified, was announced Saturday and defines the exceptions and religious and medical exemptions process for employees who canā€™t or wonā€™t get their shots.

___

FRANKFORT, Kentucky ā€” Democratic Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has announced that heā€™s calling the stateā€™s Republican-led legislature into a special session to shape pandemic policies as the state struggles with a record surge of COVID-19 cases and hospitalizations.

The return of lawmakers to the state Capitol starts Tuesday and marks a dramatic power shift in coronavirus-related policymaking in the Bluegrass State following a landmark court ruling.

Since the pandemic hit Kentucky, the governor mostly acted unilaterally in setting statewide virus policies, but the state Supreme Court shifted those decisions to the legislature.

ā€œNow, that burden will fall in large part on the General Assembly,ā€ Beshear said Saturday. ā€œIt will have to carry much of that weight to confront unpopular choices and to make decisions that balance many things, including the lives and the possible deaths of our citizens.ā€

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in