The Robert Koch Institute (RKI) for infectious diseases predicted that the number of daily reported cases could exceed 30,000 in the 14th week of the year starting April 12. "An extrapolation of the trends shows that case numbers can be expected above the Christmas level from week 14 onwards," the RKI said in its current situation report. On Saturday, the number of COVID-19 cases rose by 12,674 and the death toll was up 239, with the number of cases per 100,000 over seven days jumping to 76.1 from 72.4. Leaders are due to meet again on March 22 to discuss whether any further relaxation of the rules is possible. "We can only have more relaxation if there are stable or falling case numbers," Karl Lauterbach, health expert for the Social Democrats, told the Augsburger Allgemeine newspaper, adding this was unlikely anytime soon.
