Date Published: 20/04/2022
ARCHIVED - Coronavirus incidence rises 70 points in a week: Spain Covid update April 20
As Spain finally scraps masks indoors, hospitalisations are also on the rise
From Wednesday April 20, face masks will no longer be mandatory indoors in Spain in most venues, with the exception of health settings and on public transport. The Ministry of Health laboured over the decision to scrap the restriction for several months, but as the pandemic data showed signs of improvement in recent weeks, they finally decided to pull the trigger.
However, since the Spanish government made the decision to only report on cases in older people and the vulnerable populations, the outlook has grown steadily worse, with the incidence rate rising in over 60s. On the other hand, even though hospitalisations in general have increased in the last week, the number of patients critically ill in intensive care has dropped, indicating that while coronavirus is still prevalent in our society, it isn’t causing the serious illnesses it once did.
Coronavirus infections
The Ministry of Health reported 74,679 new cases of coronavirus on Tuesday April 19, of which 35,456 have been diagnosed in vulnerable groups, which brings the total number of infections in Spain since the beginning of the pandemic to 11,736,893.
Cumulative incidence rate
Regarding the average incidence of infections in the last 14 days in people over 60 years of age, the report shows an increase of more than 70 points in the last week. This figure now stands at 505.86 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, compared to 435.42 last Tuesday.
In the past two weeks, a total of 62,312 people in this age group have tested positive.
Fatalities
The Ministry has registered 455 more Covid-related fatalities in the last week, which brings the overall death toll since the health crisis began to 103,721.
Hospitalisations
There are currently 5,635 patients admitted to hospitals throughout Spain for coronavirus (up from 4,779 a week ago) while 345 patients are being treated for more serious conditions in the country’s ICUs (down from 368 last Tuesday).
As a result, the occupancy rate in wards has increased to 4.59% from 3.87%, while the percentage of intensive care beds taken by Covid patients has dropped from 4.07% a week ago to 3.84% today.
Vaccination data
As of April 12, a total of 39,027,546 people, representing 92.5% of the population over the age of 12 are now double jabbed. In addition, 39,207,161 people, or 92.9%, have had at least one vaccine.
Now read: How to get a Covid passport and how to book an appointment for a vaccine or booster jab in Spain
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