Overview

• He presented data showing vaccinations reduced infections and deaths and lessened disease severity during the Omicron wave.
• He rejected a so‑called ‘Durchseuchung’ approach as unethical and unworkable, noting many vulnerable people lived outside care homes.
• He corrected a widely cited school‑closure figure, explaining that 183 days reflected closures somewhere in Germany, whereas nationwide closures totaled 74 days.
• He criticized media formats for creating pseudo‑controversies by elevating minority views, and he affirmed the robustness of excess‑mortality statistics.
• He acknowledged that a Leopoldina call for a vaccine mandate for medical staff looks incorrect in hindsight given Omicron’s reduced severity, and he linked Saxony’s low vaccination rates to heavier ICU burdens.