For the first time since the beginning of the pandemic, Germany has recorded more than 100.000 new cases of coronavirus within a single day. The infection rate is gathering pace as Omicron spreads across the country. 

112.323 new COVID cases in Germany

The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) revealed on Wednesday morning that it had registered 112.323 new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours - a new daily record for the federal republic, exactly a week after the 80.000-mark was surpassed for the first time. 

The seven-day incidence rate has risen to a new high of 584,4, up from 553,2 the day before and 407,5 a week ago. Wednesday marks the sixth day in a row that a new high point has been reached. The RKI also registered a further 239 coronavirus-related deaths in the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths in Germany to 116.081. 

Health minister expects Omicron to peak in February

Compared to some European neighbours, the Omicron variant of COVID-19 got off to a relatively slow start in Germany, but in recent weeks the case numbers have begun to hit the highs seen in other badly-affected countries like the UK, France and Italy. As of this week, Omicron accounts for more than 70 percent of new cases in Germany.

Federal Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said on Tuesday that he expects the German Omicron-driven fourth wave to hit a peak around the middle of February, so it’s likely that the coming days and weeks will bring more record daily numbers. He added that the real number of infections could be up to two times higher than the official figures. 

Lauterbach: Vaccine mandate could come in April or May

Lauterbach - along with other prominent health officials - is now convinced that at some point everyone will contract the virus, but he emphasised in an interview with RTL Direct that this did not make vaccination superfluous. “There is still no basic immunity, especially for the elderly and the sick,” he warned. 

Together with Federal Chancellor Olaf Scholz, Lauterbach is pushing for a general vaccination mandate to be implemented in Germany. He said that, pending the Bundestag’s approval, the necessary legislation could be in place in April or May, to provide protection going into the autumn. 

However, the chancellor and health minister will face significant resistance to the plan - not only in the form of the thousands of demonstrators who have taken to the streets in recent weeks to protest compulsory vaccination, but also from within their own coalition government. The business-friendly FDP party has indicated it is not in favour of the move.