Austria's chancellor on Thursday stepped up threats of lockdown measures for unvaccinated people, as new coronavirus cases in the Alpine nation are soaring. The country's worst-affected province said it plans to take that step next week.

Austria has taken a series of measures in recent weeks in an effort to curb the spread of COVID-19 and encourage more people to get vaccinated. On Monday, new rules took effect barring unvaccinated people who haven't recovered from an infection from restaurants, hotels, hairdressing salons and large public events.

Chancellor Alexander Schallenberg said late last month that unvaccinated people in Austria could face new lockdown restrictions if infection numbers continue to rise — which they have. On Thursday, official figures showed 760.6 reported new cases per 100,000 residents over the previous seven days — a rate three times that of neighboring Germany, where record numbers also are causing alarm.

During a visit Thursday to Bregenz in western Austria, Schallenberg said that a lockdown for the unvaccinated is “probably unavoidable” and that the unvaccinated face an “uncomfortable” winter and Christmas, the Austria Press Agency reported.

“I don’t see why two-thirds should lose their freedom because one-third is dithering,” Schallenberg said. “For me, it is clear that there should be no lockdown for the vaccinated out of solidarity for the unvaccinated.”

Upper Austria province, the country's worst-affected region with nearly 1,200 new cases per 100,000 residents over the past week, said later Thursday that it plans to take the lead.

Officials there “plan a lockdown for unvaccinated people from Monday, provided that there is a legal green light from the federal government, or rather that the federal government creates the legal basis,” governor Thomas Stelzer said.

Schallenberg said authorities would consider a vaccine mandate for some professional groups. He added that the country's vaccination rate is “shamefully low.” About 65% of the population is fully inoculated.

The chancellor insisted that “we can break this wave together.”

Dutch see record daily number of new COVID-19 infections

 The Dutch public health institute on Thursday announced the highest daily tally of new COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began, as the government reportedly considered a limited lockdown to put the brakes on spiking infections.

The institute said it recorded 16,364 new positive tests in the 24 hours to 10 a.m., a rise of 3,688 over the previous day.

The soaring number of cases in this nation of 17.5 million comes despite more than 84% of the Dutch adult population being fully vaccinated.

Earlier Thursday, neighboring Germany also recorded a record daily number of positive cases. The Robert Koch Institute, Germany’s national disease control center, registered 50,196 new cases, up from 33,949 daily cases a week earlier.

Hospitals in the southern province of Limburg — the hardest-hit Dutch region — sounded the alarm earlier this week in a letter to the health ministry, saying: “We are heading straight for a healthcare blockage and the entire system is grinding to a standstill.”

They added that, “we are convinced that other parts of the Netherlands will soon follow.”

The caretaker Dutch government re-introduced the use of face masks in stores and other public locations over the weekend and Prime Minister Mark Rutte is scheduled to give a nationally televised press conference Friday evening to discuss possible new measures.

Dutch media reported Thursday that a panel of experts has advised the government to reintroduce some lockdown measures for two weeks in an attempt to slow the rate of infections. The panel's advice was not immediately made public.

Germany mulls new COVID-19 measures as infections spike

Germany reported a record-high number of more than 50,000 daily coronavirus cases on Thursday as lawmakers mulled legislation that would pave the way for new coronavirus measures.

The Robert Koch Institute, Germany's national disease control center, registered 50,196 new cases, up from 33,949 daily cases a week earlier. Infections have multiplied so quickly in recent days that hospitals in the hardest-hit regions canceled scheduled surgeries to allow medical personnel to focus on COVID-19 patients.

The institute also reported 237 daily COVID-19 deaths, bringing Germany’s pandemic death toll to 97,198. One of the country's top virologists, Christian Drosten, warned on Wednesday that another 100,000 people could die in the coming months if the country's vaccination rate didn't accelerate quickly.

Unlike some other European countries, Germany has balked at making vaccinations mandatory for certain categories of workers and has struggled to persuade more people to voluntarily get shots.

At least 67% of the population of 83 million is fully vaccinated, according to official figures.

“In Germany, I must say, unfortunately, that our vaccination rate isn’t high enough to prevent the fast spread of the virus,” Chancellor Angela Merkel said late Wednesday.

Vice Chancellor Olaf Scholz who is likely to take over as chancellor echoed Merkel, telling lawmakers that everything must be done to get more people vaccinated.

“The virus is still among us and threatening our health,” said Scholz. “We must make sure that vaccinations are conducted and that they are conducted at high speed.”

A caretaker national government has governed Germany since a September parliamentary election. The three parties that are expected to form the new government are looking to replace a March, 2020 “national epidemic” declaration at the end of the month with new legislation for enacting COVID-19 measures.

Scholz announced that the three parties - his own Social Democrats, the Greens and the pro-business Free Democrats - plan to to re-open vaccination centers across the country so that people can receive booster shots swiftly.

Other virus measures include free tests, daily or frequent testing at nursing homes and schools and tougher enforcement of measures.

Germany has had a patchwork of regional rules throughout the pandemic. Most places permit access to many indoor facilities and events only to those people who have been vaccinated, have recovered from COVID-19 or had a recent negative test.

Scholz said both he and Merkel agreed that the federal government and all 16 states need to meet again next week to find common solutions on how to counter the infection spike.

“That is what we need now: for the country to stick together and pull in one direction so that we can get through this winter,” said Scholz.