Lauterbach Open to Publishing Mask Report

In a recent statement, former Health Minister Karl Lauterbach expressed his willingness to release the original version of a report concerning mask purchases made during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic. Lauterbach acknowledged on social media that he did not publish the report during his tenure as health minister, particularly during the election campaign and his transitional period in office.

He emphasized that he had requested the report's author, Sudhof, to document the events as they occurred, based on her best understanding. Lauterbach noted that he had not discussed the contents of the report with her at any point, neither in writing nor verbally.

This discussion arises amidst ongoing media scrutiny regarding expensive mask procurement during the pandemic, a period when Jens Spahn, the current leader of the Union parliamentary group, was serving as health minister. Reports have suggested that Spahn favored the logistics company Fiege, bypassing a competitive bidding process. Spahn defended his actions, citing the urgency of securing masks at the time.

In light of these developments, the Green Party and the Left Party are calling for the complete disclosure of the Sudhof report, which remains classified. The Green parliamentary group has initiated requests for special sessions of both the Budget Committee and the Health Committee to address the issue.

Current Health Minister Nina Warken has indicated her intention not to present the full report to Parliament but plans to share findings related to the mask purchases with the Budget Committee, using insights from the Sudhof report.

Meanwhile, Karl-Josef Laumann, the Health Minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, defended Spahn, arguing that anyone in a position of responsibility during that time faced an entirely different set of circumstances. He remarked that it is easy to judge decisions made in the past, emphasizing the cooperative spirit across party lines during the crisis.