© Yves Kortum / Gouvernement.lu
Minister of Health Paulette Lenert was RTL Radio's invitee on Monday morning.
Lenert said that she expects a coronavirus vaccine to be ready by the end of 2020, or in early 2021 at the latest. A working group would be in place to come up with an effective vaccine strategy.
In hindsight, locking down Luxembourg in March was the right choice to make, said the minister, but another similar situation should be avoided at all cost.
Nonetheless, both the government and the public are much better prepared and a more nuanced approach could be taken to tackle a third wave swiftly, should it be necessary.
Video report in Luxembourgish:
The public behaves differently now that they comprehend what the virus is about, how to maintain distance and how to stay safe in general. This reflects in the recent statistics, Lenert explained. The testing and tracing strategy is also working well.
Most infections show up in travellers returning from summer holidays abroad, and family gatherings are no longer are big cause for concern. A small peak is expected in autumn again, as this accompanies the yearly flu season. Precise testing will be of great importance then.
Cross-border workers that tested positive are no longer included in the daily statistics by the ministry. But this does not affect the testing strategy; cross-border workers are still tested and tracing is completed for positive cases, but the numbers are no longer reported, as they had a negative effect abroad.
