ARCHIVED - Spain Covid update 15th July 2021: incidence rate tops 500 for the first time since February
Only 2 of the 17 regions of Spain remain below the extreme risk threshold as infection rates double in a week
The latest daily update published by the national government of Spain on Thursday evening provided further evidence that the fifth wave of coronavirus contagion is matching the surge in infection which occurred shortly after Christmas and the New Year, with the 14-day incidence rate rising to over 500 cases per 100,000 inhabitants for the first time since February.
A further 27,688 positive diagnoses confirmed in the Thursday bulletin have raised the rate to 501 cases per 100,000 inhabitants, almost double the 278 reported just a week ago, and as the overall figure rises so too does the proportion of PCR tests giving positive results, which in the latest bulletin reached 13.7 per cent.
In addition, the breakdown of incidence rates by age group provided by the Ministry of Health continues to illustrate the extent to which younger adults and teenagers – most of whom have not been vaccinated - are accounting for the majority of new cases, although all of the figures rose again:
Age 0-11: 261
Age 12-19: 1,312 (maximum 3,967 in Navarra)
Age 20-29: 1,581 (maximum 3,643 in Castilla y León)
Age 30-39: 659
Age 40-49: 311
Age 50-59: 183
Age 60-69: 173
Age 70-79: 71
Age 80+: 87
Among Spain’s 17 regions the highest overall rates per 100,000 of population over the last 14 days are reported in Catalunya (1,108), Castilla y León (826), Navarra (779) and Aragón (588), and as many as 15 of Spain’s 17 regions are above the “extreme risk” threshold of 250. The only exceptions are Castilla-La Mancha (151) and Murcia (218), along with the north African enclaves of Ceuta (85.5) and Melilla (155).
In response, various regional governments have begun to tighten up some of the restrictions on movement and social gatherings which have been relaxed in recent months, and the regional governments of both the Comunidad Valenciana and Catalunya have announced the re-introduction of night-time curfews.
Hospital admissions and fatalities
Despite the protection against serious illness which is provided by the vaccines, the fifth wave is placing more and more strain on public health services throughout Spain. The proportion of hospital beds occupied by coronavirus patients has risen to 3.91 per cent while in intensive care units the equivalent is 9.18 per cent, but in Catalunya the figures are 6.78% and 24.61% respectively.
At the same time, the number of newly confirmed Covid-related fatalities on Wednesday rose appreciably to 41 and the official total since early 2020 now stands at 81,084.
Vaccination data
Following the administration of a further 674,000 doses on Wednesday the number of people in Spain who are fully vaccinated against coronavirus has reached 22,949,155, equivalent to 48.4 per cent of the population.
28,759,879 people have received at least one vaccine dose, equivalent to 60.6 per cent of the population.
However, in the age group with most cases being reported – those between 20 and 29 – the equivalent proportions are just 12.2 per cent fully vaccinated and 21.6 per cent with at least one dose.