Weekly Updates from the German Federal Parliament (Bundestag)

The German government has proposed a draft bill to amend the Infection Protection Act, outlining updated measures for further pandemic control and modifications to the 3G rules. The bill emphasises hospitalisation rates, ICU occupancy, and vaccination rates as key factors in guiding pandemic control steps, moving beyond reliance solely on case incidence.

The draft bill introduces a measured, tiered approach to pandemic control using hospitalisation incidence as the primary indicator. If hospitalisations exceed three per 100,000 residents in seven days, public leisure facilities must operate under the stricter "2G" rule (access only for vaccinated or recovered persons). If the threshold reaches six, a "2G+" rule applies, possibly requiring testing in addition to vaccination or recovery status. At nine or more, additional measures like contact restrictions come into effect.

The "3G" rule—granting access to vaccinated, recovered, or tested individuals—continues to be a baseline, with stricter variants like 2G and 2G+ applied based on hospital capacity and case severity. The bill also includes provisions for restrictions or differential treatment of unvaccinated individuals depending on current epidemiological conditions, supporting public health efforts to limit virus transmission especially in healthcare and public settings.

The draft bill also accounts for necessary consequential amendments to related laws, such as those concerning animal vaccines and health fines, showing a broader regulatory alignment process.

Certain regulations will be extended, including simplified access to basic security, measures under the COVID-19 Occupational Health and Safety Regulation, special regulations for parental leave allowance, suspension of the annual minimum income threshold in the Artists' Social Security Act, and special regulation on the entitlement claim for parents of children in daycare facilities.

The German Bundestag will approve the regulation this week, and the draft bill provides for a limited federal state opening clause, allowing states to decide on further measures like canceling events or temporarily closing leisure facilities. Hospitals and intensive care units are reaching their capacity limits, and a mandatory 3G rule will apply in the workplace and in public local and long-distance transport. Home office will be reintroduced where operationally feasible.

The use of forged vaccination certificates and test certificates will be comprehensively penalized, with laws against forging health certificates being expanded, and penalties up to imprisonment of one year or a fine. The German government will provide an additional seven billion euros subsidy to statutory health insurers in 2022, totaling 28.5 billion euros.

With the support of the federal government, social security contributions will be stabilized below 40 percent. The draft bill also provides for hospitals to receive an additional time-limited remuneration for the full or partial stationary treatment of patients with a COVID-19 infection. The 7-day incidence rate is above 300 nationwide, and more than two-thirds of citizens are fully vaccinated.

The Bundestag will hold a final vote on the Draft Bill to Amend the Infection Protection Act this week, and federal states will be given options for action to effectively and legally secure the pandemic while respecting fundamental rights. The regulation was drawn up in agreement with the Federal Ministry of Finance by the Federal Ministry of Health, and doctors who issue incorrect health certificates will face criminal charges. The preparation of blank vaccination certificates and their trade will be penalized.

The German government's draft bill, aimed at amending the Infection Protection Act, incorporates a strategy that emphasizes science, particularly hospitalization rates, in guiding pandemic control measures.
The bill introduces a policy-and-legislation-based approach to pandemic control, with a tiered system that includes the '2G' and '2G+' rules for leisure facilities, determined by health-and-wellness factors like hospitalization rates.
In the realm of finance, the German government has announced an additional seven billion euros subsidy to statutory health insurers in 2022, as part of their efforts to manage the pandemic.
The draft bill addresses mental-health concerns, stating that doctors who issue incorrect health certificates will face criminal charges, indicative of a commitment to upholding general-news standards of integrity.