Germany is contemplating further measures to contain Covid-19 as the omicron variant threatens to become the dominant strain in the country by mid-January. When Chancellor Olaf Scholz meets with state leaders on Friday to discuss the pandemic, the country could shorten quarantine times to prevent staff shortages in critical services like hospitals and police, according to Health Minister Karl Lauterbach. “There are very many questions that need to be settled, and preparations are in full swing,” Lauterbach said late Sunday in an interview with RTL/ntv television. He reiterated a call for more citizens to get vaccinated or booster shots, warning that omicron still represents a significant threat despite evidence it may cause milder symptoms than the delta variant. Europe’s biggest economy is currently in what some officials have termed a “lockdown for the unvaccinated,” with wide-ranging limits on the size of public events and on access to non-essential stores. […]