Austrians earned an unenviable distinction Friday morning, when the country became Europe’s first to go back into lockdown.
Everyone — vaccinated or not — …
Austrians earned an unenviable distinction Friday morning, when the country became Europe’s first to go back into lockdown. Everyone — vaccinated or not — is to stay at home on government instructions, much as they did when the pandemic first emerged. The restrictions go into effect Monday and are due to last three weeks. After that, vaccinated people can resume their daily lives, but the unvaccinated are to stay locked down, Insider’s Sinéad Baker reported on Friday. Austria’s response to the latest surge is part of a wider swath of restrictions sweeping Europe. The country’s lockdown was prompted by a sharp COVID surge, more extreme than some other places in Europe, but on a similar upward trajectory: Austrian Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg gave an explanation for the new rules: not enough vaccinated people. Austria has one of Europe’s lower vaccination rates, with just 65.71% of its population vaccinated. Other countries are suffering lesser versions of the same paradigm. Germany (67% vaccinated), Slovakia (55%), and the Czech Republic (58%) are all in the midst of their own COVID surges — and government crackdowns are already underway.
