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ARCHIVED - Spain breaks another infection record: Covid update January 18
Both infections and the incidence rate have reached new heights in Spain
Since the sixth wave of the coronavirus pandemic began in Spain on October 14, around 3.1 million people have contracted Covid and according to the health authorities, more than a third of the overall cases have been reported since the Omicron variant emerged just over a month later.
Although cases are still on the rise across Spain, the speed of infections certainly appears to be slowing down and most experts believe that this wave will have reached its peak by the end of next week.
Coronavirus infections
The Ministry of Health reported the highest number of infections over a single weekend on Monday January 17. With 331,000 positives in three days, the total number of cases since the beginning of the pandemic rises to 8,424,503.
In the last 24 hours, 36,414 new infections were registered, still a significant number but lower than the 44,039 cases reported last Monday.
In the past two weeks, a total of 1,609,995 positives have been registered.
Cumulative incidence rate
This 14-day figure has also reached a new record on January 17 with 3,397 cases per 100,000 inhabitants after increasing 205 points over the weekend. However, this rise is smaller than the one suffered last weekend when it shot up 267 notches, which is a good indication that this wave is regressing, albeit slowly.
In addition, the 7-day incidence rate has been steadily declining since last week and remains below 50% of the two-week number.
By autonomous community, Andalucía is still faring the best with just 1,440.13 cases per 100,000 inhabitants. As of Monday, the Region of Murcia had registered a worrying 4,714.96 cases while the Valencian Community remains below the national average with 3,197.34 infections.
Hospitalisations
There are currently 18,821 people admitted to hospital for Covid (up from 17,436 on Friday) while 2,251 people are being treated in the ICU (a slight increase on 2,232).
The occupancy rate of beds occupied stands at 15.13%, increasing more than 1% since Friday and placing it at very high risk; the ICU has increased from 20% to 23.83% - high risk.
Hospital pressure is at its highest in Catalonia (44%) followed by the Basque Country (30%).
Fatalities
Sadly, 234 more people have died from Covid, compared to 202 last Monday. In the last week alone, 462 people in Spain have lost their lives. Since the health crisis began, 90,993 people have died from Covid.
Omicron variant
According to the latest data, Omicron has quadrupled the number of reported reinfections in just a month and a half: of the 64,937 cases reported, 80% have occurred since the end of November, when the first incidence of the variant was discovered in Spain.
However, the experts believe that the Omicron strain could be one of the keys to Covid immunity, since the “vast majority of reinfections tend to be less or equal to the primary infection.” This is not only down to vaccinations, but the fact that cellular memory provides a far greater defence against the second illness.
Vaccination data
As of January 17, a total of 38,994,827 people, representing 92.4% of the population over the age of 12 have received their first dose while 90.5% (38,173,059) are now fully vaccinated.
A further 17,195,074 booster jabs have also been administered.
Now see: How to obtain a Covid passport in Spain and How to book an appointment for a vaccine or booster jab
Image: Ayto. Torre Pacheco
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