ARCHIVED - 8,800 new cases and 126 more fatalities as possibility of fourth Covid wave increases in Spain; Data April 7
Higher vaccination figures provide greater resistance to infection as unvaccinated over-80s are urged to contact their local medical centres
The indications that a fourth wave of coronavirus contagion is starting in Spain continue to mount up, and on Wednesday evening the latest update published by the Ministry of Health reported a further 8,788 new cases, far more than has been the norm over the last few weeks and the highest 24-hour figure since late February, while the 14-day accumulated incidence rate continued its steady rise.
The average nationwide rate now stands at just under 168 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, and while this is only four points higher than the previous day it is worth pointing out that shortly before Easter week the indicator had dipped to 128. The situation remains relatively encouraging in some of the 17 regions – in Valencia, Murcia, the Balearics and Galicia the figures are 31, 62, 62 and 67 respectively – but in others the outlook is a far more worrying one.
In the north African enclave of Melilla, for example, the latest 14-day rate is calculated to be 459, well above the 250 “extreme risk” threshold, while others in the same risk category are Ceuta (391), Navarra (369), Madrid (302) and the Basque Country (279).
This clearly illustrates the disparity in the level of contagions across the country; the rate in Madrid is ten times that of the Valencia region and in Navarra twelve times higher than in Valencia.
In comparison with the previous day’s figures, the rate rose by over 10 per cent in both Castilla-La Mancha and Aragón and less significantly in 8 other regions, while slight decreases were reported in Asturias, the Balearics, the Comunidad Valenciana, Murcia and Catalunya.
In the hospitals of Spain, meanwhile, the overstretching of resources continues to be a significant problem. The most recent bulletin reports a very slight decrease in the proportion of hospital beds occupied by Covid patients to 7.52 per cent (as opposed to only 5.3 per cent in mid-March), but in intensive care units the equivalent figure has climbed back above 20 per cent for the first time since 18th March and in La Rioja, Melilla, Madrid and Catalunya is well over a third.
The figures in ICU units are those which most preoccupy the health service due to the length of time spent in the recovery phase of Covid. In some cases, patients have required intensive care for several months.
At the same time, the addition of a further 126 Covid-related fatalities brings the official Ministry death toll over the last 15 months to 76,037, although it is generally agreed that the “real” total is substantially higher due to many fatalities during the first wave of infection in patients who had not been tested for SARS-Cov-2.
Over 80 and not vaccinated yet?
The phase of the vaccination campaign aimed at those aged over 80 is now coming to an end in Spain. Anyone who has not yet received their vaccine or an appointment to do so is urged to contact their local medical centre as a matter of urgency.
The latest government data report that a total of just over 6.4 million in Spain have now received at least one dose of the vaccine, equating to 13.5 per cent of the population, while 2.94 million (6.2 per cent) have received both doses.
Last night the Health Ministry performed another abrupt U-turn in its policy relating to the AstraZeneca vaccine and will now only vaccinate those in the 60-65 age band with AstraZeneca. Click for full details
Image: The vaccination roll-out in the Valencia region