The number of coronavirus deaths in England and Wales among people over the age of 80 has fallen by 79%, the lowest tally recorded in over five weeks.
According to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), there were 1,118 deaths among adults aged 80 and above which occurred in the final week of February. Deaths among adults aged 75-79 also fell by 79% in the same period, while for 70 to 74-year-olds, the fall was 76%.
“This is a fall of more than three-quarters since the week ending Jan. 22, when 5,326 deaths involving the coronavirus took place in this age group,” the ONS said in a statement.
“We estimate that the number of deaths actually occurring (rather than registered) in Week 8 in England and Wales was between 10,472 and 12,947,” it added.
In England, between January and February, the number of deaths registered under the virus decreased from 12,995 to 11,844. Total deaths in all English regions have also decreased for the second week in a row. In Wales during the same period, the number of deaths fell from 787 to 759
On Tuesday, 5,766 people tested positive for the virus. Between March 3 and March 9, 40,600 had a confirmed positive test result, representing a 24.5% decrease compared to the previous seven days.
Some 231 deaths were reported within 28 days of testing positive for the virus on Tuesday. Between March 3 and March 9, there were 1,329 deaths within 28 days of testing. This shows a 33.2% decrease in comparison to the previous week.
A total of 22,592,528 people had been administered their first dose of the vaccine by the end of March 8, with 1,181,431 people receiving their second dose by the end of March 8. Vaccines are currently administered in two doses 21 days apart.
The latest R range for the UK has increased slightly and is now at 0.7-0.9, with the current growth rate also increasing to -5% to -3% per day. The R number is a mechanism used to rate the virus’s ability to spread, with R being the number of people that one infected person will pass the virus on to.