Austria Ends Lockdown Only for Vaccinated People

For Austrians who have been vaccinated or cured of the coronavirus, the lockdown in their country will end in the night from Saturday to Sunday.

National and regional leaders decided that on Wednesday. But, even after that, unvaccinated inhabitants of the Alpine country will still have to deal with the strict restrictions.

Austria went into lockdown on November 22. That meant residents needed a valid reason to leave home. Even after the relaxation of the measures, rules will remain in force to prevent the spread of the coronavirus. For example, people in indoor locations must wear face masks, and restaurants must close at 11 p.m. Night catering remains closed.

However, federal states may also deviate from the national standard to pursue a stricter policy. Unfortunately, in many cases, they intend to. For example, Upper Austria wants to remain in lockdown until December 17. Other states are keeping hotels and cafes closed for longer.

New Chancellor Karl Nehammer says the lockdown for unvaccinated people will initially be extended by 10 days. He does not rule out that the measures will be extended afterwards. Austria is trying everything to get the vaccination rate up. That was called “embarrassingly low” by Nehammer’s predecessor last month.