Coronavirus infections down by 22%, new Omicron strain set to become dominant

Coronavirus infections, hospital admissions and new intensive care cases all fell by around 20% in the last week, according to the latest update by the RIVM.

The Omicron subvariant BA.2 is expected to become the dominant strain of the virus by the end of this week, the public health agency said.

The new variant is said to be more infectious in indoor settings but there is no evidence it causes more serious illness or is more resistant to the booster vaccine.

In the last seven days 482,695 new cases were recorded, equivalent to 2.7 confirmed infections for every 1,000 people. The figure was 22% lower than last week.

Hospital admissions were 18% lower at 1,149. On Tuesday the number of patients in hospital with coronavirus reached 1,656, its highest level since January 5 and just under 5% more than a week ago.

Intensive care admissions fell by 28% to 88 in the last seven days, while there are currently 181 patients in IC. Around 80% of patients with coronavirus are being treated mainly or partly for Covid-19.

Most age groups declining

The RIVM confirmed another 78 deaths from coronavirus in the last seven days, up from 54.

Infections are falling in most age groups, but rising in the over-70s and over-80s, where cases were up by 27% and 35% respectively.

The decline was fastest in the youngest age groups, where the overall infection rate is much higher. Almost 5% of 13 to 17-year-olds tested positive in the last week, 10 times the rate for the over-80s.

The RIVM urged people to continue testing themselves before visiting elderly and vulnerable people after coronavirus restrictions are lifted at the end of the month, as ‘they have a greater risk of ending up in hospital if they are infected with coronavirus.’