Security and stability

Since August 2021, the Thuringian Ministry of Education has stopped funding the rapid test for the SARS-CoV-2 virus in daycare centers. This offer included a test twice a week for the children and staff. Those responsible in Erfurt, Jena and Eisenach find this decision by the Free State absolutely incomprehensible. The current recommendations of the RKI should definitely be followed, which underlines the great importance of comprehensive testing in daycare centers and schools and expressly praises the model of PCR pool testing in daycare centers and schools practiced in NRW in particular.

Jena's mayor Christian Gerlitz had already announced on Friday that Jena would continue to fund testing in daycare centers without any gaps for the time being. However, this can only be a stopgap measure:

"The Ministry of Culture is leaving the children, parents and staff in the daycare centers alone. It cannot be in the interests of a state government to jeopardize this advantage in times of low incidence. The suspension of testing in childcare facilities is a symbol of the TMBJS's lack of sense of responsibility for the overall situation in the pandemic. Undetected disease outbreaks in the facilities would be a heavy burden in overcoming this pandemic."

Erfurt's Lord Mayor Andreas Bausewein also insists that the tests for daycare children will continue to be funded by the state. However, he suggests changing the testing procedure in future: no more self-tests in the facilities, but in the home environment.

"According to our Erfurt health department, the error rate for coronavirus tests in daycare groups is extremely high. It is therefore important that parents test their children at home in future. To this end, the state must provide them with test kits free of charge," he said.

Katja Wolf, Mayor of Eisenach, summarized the disadvantages for her city:

"Protecting our children is my top priority. Our youngest children cannot currently be vaccinated. That's why I believe it is urgently necessary for the Free State to continue to make free testing possible for them. It is simply not possible to impose the financing on the municipalities."

All three responsible parties are calling on the state government to immediately resume funding the testing service and to examine the possibility of switching to more advanced testing methods. Undetected infections, quarantine or even the closure of facilities would be far more expensive than the cost of the test material.