Covid-19 killing more people in deprived areas, figures reveal
ANUMBER of communities across Wales have seen fatalities climb into the doubledigits, latest figures showed yesterday.
Though the infection rate has dropped, the death toll of people with lab-confirmed coronavirus in Wales has reached 1,435 since the outbreak began, Public Health Wales (PHW) said.
The deaths of 10 more people with Covid-19 were reported in the previous 24 hours, according to PHW’s latest update yesterday.
Porth East and Ynyshir, both in the Rhondda, have recorded 29 deaths across March, April and May, while Pontypridd West and Canton each recorded 25 deaths.
Morriston in Swansea has seen 22 deaths while Pillgwenlly in Newport has seen 21. The community in north Wales with the most deaths is Rhyl North with 20.
A handful of locations, however, have recorded no deaths at all during the three-month period.
New Quay and Penbyrn in Ceredigion; and Tre-lech, Cenarth and Llangeler, in Carmarthenshire, are among those to have recorded no coronavirus-related deaths up until May.
As of yesterday, the total number of cases in Wales has reached 14,658, according to Public Health Wales.
The figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show a clear link between deaths from Covid-19 and deprivation.
In Wales, the most deprived fifth of areas had 109.5 coronavirus deaths per 100,000 population, nearly twice as high as the least deprived areas (57.5 deaths per 100,000 population).
Dave Innes, head of economics at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, said: “Before the pandemic hit, there were signs that our record on tackling poverty and health inequalities was unravelling. Covid-19 has laid bare just how stark those inequalities are.
“It is completely unacceptable that someone’s life chances are so profoundly affected by where they live. Today’s statistics must act as a wakeup call – as a society with a strong sense of decency and compassion, we can and must do better.”
Over the three months, London had the overall highest mortality rate, with 137.6 deaths per 100,000 people – more than a third higher than the next highest region.
Nine of the 10 local authorities with the highest Covid-19 mortality rates during this period were London boroughs.
Wales overall has also been hit less hard than England. Accounting for population structure, there were 81.9 deaths involving Covid-19 per 100,000 people in England and 67.6 per 100,000 in Wales between March 1 and May 31.
Figures show that the Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board has recorded the most cases overall in Wales, followed by the Cardiff and Vale University and Aneurin Bevan University health boards.
It has been confirmed the rate of spread of coronavirus in Wales is the lowest in the UK.
Coronavirus mortality rates more
DEATHS BY HEALTH BOARD
BETSI Cadwaladr UHB ............ 3,068 POWYS Teaching HB ................... 296 HYWEL Dda UHB ...................... 1,068 ANEURIN Bevan UHB ............. 2,590 CARDIFF and Vale UHB .......... 2,855 CWM Taf Morgannwg UHB.. 2,293 SWANSEA Bay UHB ................. 1,891 than halved in all but two regions in England and Wales between April and May, figures from the ONS show.
After rising between March and April, age-standardised mortality rates fell by more than 50% in all regions except the North-East and Yorkshire and the Humber, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) said.
The greatest decrease was in London, where the mortality rate fell by 83.3%.
The North-East, North-West and Yorkshire and the Humber had the highest mortality rates in May, as London coronavirus deaths dropped.
There were an estimated 33.1 deaths involving Covid-19 per 100,000 population in north-east England across the month, compared with 15.7 per 100,000 in London.
London had recorded the highest rate in both March and April, with rates of 27.8 deaths per 100,000 population and 94.1 deaths per 100,000 respectively.
South-west England had the lowest mortality rate overall during each of the past three months.
The local authority with the highest Covid-19 mortality rate in May was Preston in Lancashire, with a rate of 51.1 deaths per 100,000 people.
The ONS said as more deaths are registered the mortality rate is likely to increase, especially in May.