COVID 19: Germany Experimenting On Its Population By Offering Them Shelters

BuzzApril 13, 2020

Governments all over the world have been asking their people to stay inside their homes. This measure will be taken until a plan is devised, or a cure is found to eradicate the coronavirus. However, inside Berlin, the capital of Germany, nearly 2,000 people live on the streets due to the soaring rents. To be honest, it is even harder for people who are living on a day to day basis to pay rents due to joblessness.

Authorities often overlook the physical realities of homeless people

The guidelines of social distancing being ordered by the government can easily overlook the physical realities of the homeless. Due to the closure of many public businesses, homeless people can’t even take care of their basic hygiene, such as showering and washing hands. The shelters in which homeless people reside only offer an overnight stay and force the people to brave the streets the next day.

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Germany is experimenting on its homeless population

Berlin has taken certain initiatives over the years to fight off homelessness. In January, German officials surveyed the homeless and offered shelters to more than 36,000 homeless people. Berlin also provides 1,000 temporary sleeping spaces to the homeless for winter seasons.

Because of the pandemic, the city needed a non-traditional solution, and that’s what the officials did. The authorities are looking forward to opening a 400-bed hostel in the capital for the homeless to stay. The opening of the hostel is just an initial experiment to record the response of people who reside on the streets. If the experiment succeeds, it could become a valuable solution for the government to fill the spaces left by industries with homeless people, solving the problem once and for all.

It is reported that Berlin officially has more than 130,000 hotel beds, which are more than anywhere in Germany. The majority of them will remain vacant as long as the coronavirus is still around.

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The hostel is rich in facilities and is offering medical care

Berlin hasn’t reported any case of coronavirus in its homeless population yet, but that didn’t stop the officials from taking the necessary precautions. For people who want to take the offer from the government by residing in the hostel, they would have to undergo a full body checkup and medical exam.

The hostel would have a 24/7 facility of social workers, medical staff, and other necessary resources at its disposal. It is quite evident from the measures taken by the Berlin officials that it is the only right thing to do to stop the virus from spreading among the homeless.