On 8 September 2022, the Higher Administrative Court of Lower Saxony in Lüneburg rejected a dentist’s appeal against the decision of the Administrative Court of Osnabrück which had upheld the ban of the applicant’s professional activities due to his refusal to vaccinate against COVID-19.
The corresponding health authority had banned the dentist from working in his dental practice or any other facility, from June 2022 until the end of the year, as he had refused to show proof of vaccination or convalescence, a requirement under the Infection Protection Act for people working in medical and dental practices, among others. The Osnabrück Administrative Court had rejected the urgent appeal by the dentist. Here, the Higher Administrative Court in Lüneburg relied on the decision of the Federal Constitutional Court of April 2022 which had upheld the constitutionality of the vaccine mandate for the medical profession. The Higher Administrative Court held that, since then, there has been no fundamental change in the scientific findings on the protective effect of the COVID-19 vaccine and found the ban to be proportionate since it served to protect the health and lives of the doctor’s patients.
