• News
  • Sport
  • TV
  • Radio
  • Education
  • TV Licences
  • Contact Us
No Result
View All Result
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • SCI-TECH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION
Home Sci-tech

Germany assessing reliability of antibody tests for Omicron – minister

10 January 2022, 4:09 AM  |
Reuters Reuters |  @SABCNews
Test tubes labelled "COVID-19 Test Positive" are seen in front of displayed words "OMICRON SARS-COV-2" in this illustration. [File image]

Test tubes labelled "COVID-19 Test Positive" are seen in front of displayed words "OMICRON SARS-COV-2" in this illustration. [File image]

Image: Reuters

Test tubes labelled "COVID-19 Test Positive" are seen in front of displayed words "OMICRON SARS-COV-2" in this illustration. [File image]

Germany will study how reliable rapid antigen tests are in detecting the fast-spreading Omicron variant of COVID-19, Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said on Sunday.

“We do not know exactly how well these tests work for Omicron,” Lauterbach said on public broadcasting channel ARD, adding the results of the assessment would become available within the next few weeks.

It was clear, however, that “the alternative not to test at all … would be far too dangerous,” said Lauterbach, a scientist and physician.

Earlier, he had told a Sunday newspaper that Germany must revamp its COVID-19 vaccination strategy to tackle the Omicron variant and to ensure it can develop a new vaccine rapidly if it faces a more deadly coronavirus variant in the future. New measures for dining out and bar visits were brought in only last Friday.

Omicron now accounts for 44% of coronavirus infections in Germany, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious disease said.

On Sunday, RKI registered 36,552 newly reported corona infections within 24 hours, three times the number a week earlier.

The Bundestag lower house of parliament will soon discuss a draft bill for a general vaccination mandate that is supported by businesses and the public sector, but has been delayed amid uncertainty about united support for it within the three-party coalition government.

Lauterbach, of the Social Democratic Party, strongly advocates obligatory vaccinations and Justice Minister Marco Buschmann of the libertarian FDP in an interview with Sunday newspaper Bild am Sonntag also urged parliament to decide on the issue soon.

However, the parliamentary leader of the Green Party, Britta Hasselmann said in an interview with the Funke media group that the parties had to discuss the issue internally first.

“It is not an easy decision, it implies a deep intervention,” she said.

Share article
Tags: Omicron variantGermany
Previous Post

Australia’s New South Wales marks its highest COVID-19 death count

Next Post

Ethiopia’s rebellious Tigray party accuses Eritrea of attacking its forces

Related Posts

A member of the Incident Management Team coordinates the search for a radioactive capsule that was lost in transit by a contractor hired by Rio Tinto, at the Emergency Services Complex in Cockburn, Australia, in this undated handout photo. Department of Fire and Emergency Services.

Australian nuclear body joins search for missing radioactive capsule

31 January 2023, 10:13 AM
A man wearing a protective face mask walks past an illustration of a virus outside a regional science centre amid the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, in Oldham, Britain August 3, 2020.

WHO maintains highest alert over COVID, but sees hope ahead

30 January 2023, 7:18 PM
FILE PHOTO: Smoke billows from the chimneys of Belchatow Power Station in Poland, Europe's biggest coal-fired power plant, in this May 7, 2009.

Prof Marwala urges leaders to address challenges posed by climate change

30 January 2023, 6:42 PM
[File photo] An employee of Spiez Lab work in the BSL-4 facility that is available to the World Health Organisation (WHO) as a repository for SARS-CoV-2 viruses or other pathogens with epidemic or pandemic potential.

All countries ‘dangerously unprepared’ for future pandemics: IFRC

30 January 2023, 1:42 PM
Cyril Ramaphosa

Ramaphosa reiterates importance of moving towards renewable energy

29 January 2023, 4:33 PM
File image: Water being poured into a bucket.

Water supply reduced as Joburg Water experiences power interruption

29 January 2023, 10:45 AM
Next Post
Ethiopia declared a state of emergency on November 2, a year after a conflict erupted between the federal government and forces aligned with the Tigray People's Liberation Front (TPLF), the political party controlling the northern region of Tigray.

Ethiopia's rebellious Tigray party accuses Eritrea of attacking its forces

Most Viewed

  • 24hrs
  • Week
  • Month
  • Gas leak shut, isolated in Pretoria North
  • King of Bacardi music ‘Vusi Ma R5’ killed in Soshanguve
  • Bapedi kingdom commemorates Kgosi Mampuru II, still hoping to find his remains
  • Limpopo man arrested after discovery of his wife’s body in water-filled pit toilet
  • EFF cuts ties with IFP in KwaZulu-Natal
  • Parts of the Northern Cape to be exempted from rolling blackouts
  • VIDEO | St Benedict College’s Matric learner gets 11 distinctions
  • Limpopo matriculant from child-headed household attains diploma pass
  • Female circumcision practice thriving in Eastern Cape
  • Premier denies claims that KZN government spent millions on Mampintsha’s funeral
  • King of Bacardi music ‘Vusi Ma R5’ killed in Soshanguve
  • VIDEO: Limpopo comedian’s murder case postponed
  • [WARNING:GRAPHIC CONTENT] Alleged child sex ring kingpin wanted to commit suicide: statement
  • Energy crisis could be declared a national disaster
  • Legitimacy of shooting video in Malema trial under spotlight

LATEST

People and rescue workers gather amid the damages, after a suicide blast in a mosque in Peshawar, Pakistan January 30, 2023.
  • World

Families search for loved ones after Pakistan mosque blast kills 100


Western powers say the Russian forces in Mali include Wagner Group contractors.
  • Africa

UN experts seek probe into possible war crimes by Mali, Russia’s Wagner Group


[FILE IMAGE] EFF leader Julius  Malema at Siyabonga Rally in Tembisa, Gauteng.
  • Politics

Malema’s firearms trial: East London court to allow state to use video footage as evidence


[File Image] South Africa's Shabnim Ismail celebrates with team mates after taking the wicket of England's Sarah Taylor.
  • Sport
  • Cricket

Luus to captain SA Women’s cricket team at ICC T20 World Cup


People collecting water from one of the Water tanker
  • South Africa

Rand Water reservoir levels plummet amid rolling blackouts


  • South Africa

LIVE: EFF leader Julius Malema back in court


Weather

  • About the SABC
  • Contact Us
  • Jobs
  • Advertise
  • Disclaimer
  • Site Map

SABC © 2022

No Result
View All Result
  • SOUTH AFRICA
  • POLITICS
  • BUSINESS
  • SPORT
  • AFRICA
  • WORLD
  • SCI-TECH
  • LIFESTYLE
  • FEATURES
  • OPINION

© 2022

Previous Australia’s New South Wales marks its highest COVID-19 death count
Next Ethiopia’s rebellious Tigray party accuses Eritrea of attacking its forces