One in 59 have Covid in region
ONE in 59 people in the North East are currently believed to be infected with coronavirus.
Figures published yesterday by the Office for National Statistics show that 1.7% of the North East population is believed to be infected with coronavirus. That’s one in 59 people.
The infection rate is worst in London, at 3.6% of the population, or one in 28 people.
The Office for National Statistics said in a report: “During the most recent week of the study, we estimate that 1,122,000 people in England had the coronavirus (Covid19)...this equates to 2.06% of the population in England or around 1 in 50 people.”
Separate Government data shows how the North of England has suffered more since the start of the coronavirus pandemic.
There have been 4,234 deaths linked to Covid-19 in the North East, according to official figures. This is a death rate of 158.6 per 100,000 people.
South Tyneside has one of the highest death rates in the country. There have been 316 fatalities, or 209.3 per 100,000 people. Sunderland has suffered 557 deaths, or 200.6 per 100,000.
Once the size of the population is taken into account, there have been more deaths in the North East than the south.
In the London region – currently suffering high rates of infection from the new mutant strain of Covid – there have been a total of 9,306 deaths. However, London also has a higher population, and the death rate in London since the start of the pandemic is 103.8 per 100,000 people.
The death rate in the south east is 97.8 per 100,000 people, and in the south west it is 64.5 per 100,000 people. The region with the highest death rate is the North West, where 12,274 people have died, a rate of 167.2 per 100,000 people.
The figures refer to the total number of deaths, since the start of the pandemic, of people who had had a positive test result for Covid19 and died within 28 days of the first positive test.
Figures earlier this week from Public Health England showed how the number of confirmed Covid-19 cases has shot up.
There were 427.6 cases per 100,000 people in the North East in the final week of 2020, which ran from December 28 to January 3. This was up from 242.7 cases per 100,000 a week previously, and shows how the infection rate rose quickly. However, the case rate is highest in London, with 904.8 diagnosed cases per 100,000 people. These figures refer to Covid-19 cases confirmed by a laboratory after a patient has been tested.
There was some good news yesterday as another vaccine was authorised for use by the medicines regulator. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has accepted the recommendation of the Commission on Human Medicines and authorised the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine. Trials showed the vaccine is 94% effective in preventing disease, including in the elderly.
The Government has agreed to purchase an additional 10 million doses of the Moderna vaccine on top of its previous order of seven million, taking the total to 17 million.
As agreed when the UK originally pre-ordered the vaccine, supplies will begin to be delivered to the UK from Spring once Moderna expands its production capability.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “This is further great news and another weapon in our arsenal to tame this awful disease.
“We have already vaccinated nearly 1.5 million people across the UK and Moderna’s vaccine will allow us to accelerate our vaccination programme even further once doses become available from the spring.
“While we immunise those most at risk from Covid, I urge everyone to continue following the rules to keep cases low to protect our loved ones.”