The COVID-19 outbreak in the UK is on the agenda again with the increase in cases a few weeks after the last restrictions were lifted in the country. In some regions, the number of people hospitalized with COVID-19 complaints almost reached the levels seen in February 2021, when the epidemic was most intense.
According to the data released by the British Health Services Agency, it was recorded that 14 thousand 948 people in England were treated for COVID-19 in the hospital on 21 March.
It is noteworthy that the number of patients increased by 22% compared to the previous week.
The progress in the total number of cases in the country emerged in the data shared by the British Statistical Institute last week.
While the number of cases detected in the country in the first week of March was 2 million 600 thousand, this figure jumped to 3 million 300 thousand on 12 March. These data mean that one out of every 21 people in the country is infected.
The increase in the numbers will be met with the “spring in vaccination campaign”, especially for people over the age of 75 and those whose immune system is suppressed due to chronic illness.
“Our extraordinary immunization program has saved countless lives and created a defensive wall that has made it possible for us to learn to live with COVID,” said British Health Minister Sajid Javid.
According to the information given by the UK Health Security Agency, the UK’s vaccination program has prevented 157,000 people from being hospitalized since December. However, it is stated that more than 100,000 people have been treated in hospital since the emergence of the Omicron variant.
‘Living with COVID’
The UK lifted restrictions such as masks, distance, testing and isolation at the end of January and entered a new era called “living with COVID” at the end of February.
According to scientists, the virus, which had more opportunity to spread, evolved into BA.2, a sub-variant of Omicron.
75 percent of new cases are people who have contracted the new subvariant. The scientists found that these two variants were identical, but that the last variant was 1.4 times more contagious than the previous one.
The second important difference of the last variant is that it hospitalizes people more quickly.
Public health officials predict that the rise in the number of cases with the new variant will not take long.
“We expect this rise to end in 2 to 4 weeks, as in other countries,” said Susan Hopkins, consultant to the UK Health Security Agency.
Hopkins based this estimate on the increased level of acquired herd immunity.