BERLIN

The omicron variant of the coronavirus is spreading rapidly but hospitalizations remain relatively low in Germany, official data showed Thursday.

The Robert Koch Institute, the country's disease control agency, reported 8,916 new omicron cases in the past 24 hours, taking the total number of infections with the new variant to 51,472.

Omicron-related hospitalizations stood at 538, accounting for about 1% of all infections from the variant.

So far, 15 people have died after contracting the omicron, according to the official figures.

Germany’s Health Minister Karl Lauterbach said while early data suggests that the new variant causes less severe disease and fewer deaths, those who are not vaccinated are at increased risk.

On Wednesday, he repeated his call for unvaccinated people to get their first jab without delay, stressing that vaccination reduces the risk of becoming seriously ill from the virus.

He also called on people to get their booster jabs, saying this provides the best protection against omicron.

Despite the German government’s recent efforts to increase vaccination, nearly 25% of the population have not received a single dose of a COVID-19 vaccine so far. About 15% of the unvaccinated people are adults above 18 years.

Some 71.5% of the population have been fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and nearly 41% of them have also received their booster shots, according to official data.