STIKO

The Berlin Buyers Club has published an open letter calling on Germany's Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO), the Federal Joint Committee and Federal Health Minister Nina Warken's predecessor office, currently led by Linnemann, to make adapted COVID-19 vaccines accessible now. The group is demanding science-based vaccination recommendations and faster availability of updated shots for those who want them.

The health and care working group of Germany's Pirate Party is calling on the Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) to revise its recommendation on COVID-19 vaccination. It wants broad vaccination against SARS-CoV-2 to be reinstated in the catalogue of recommended immunisations, arguing the current guidance no longer reflects the need for widespread protection.

Germany's National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina is urging better therapies for Long COVID, a condition affecting an estimated 1.5 million people in Germany. Commenters welcome the call but stress that prevention matters too, arguing COVID and Long COVID are not over. They criticise that the STIKO vaccination committee now recommends COVID shots only for a limited group of people.

A question circulating on German social media asks whether statutory health insurers (GKV) will cover a SARS-CoV-2 vaccination when the Standing Committee on Vaccination (STIKO) has not issued a recommendation for the person concerned. In Germany, GKV coverage for vaccinations generally depends on STIKO recommendations, so the answer is typically no, prompting confusion among people seeking COVID booster shots outside the recommended groups.