Covid infections are up across the UK, according to latest figures that capture the Jubilee weekend of partying. An estimated 1.4 million people or one in 45 has the virus - up from one in 65 the week before. That’s a rise of 43%.
Experts say two new fast-spreading subvariants of Omicron -called BA.4 and BA.5 - are behind some of the new infections. People can get catch them even if they have recently had other types of Covid.
Millions gathered to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee up and down the UK between 2 and 5 June, which will have given Covid many opportunities to spread.
It takes a few days, usually, for people to start showing symptoms or testing positive after catching it, which means the latest data covers some of that Jubilee mixing.
The data is collated by testing thousands of people from UK households - whether they have symptoms or not - to estimate how much virus is around.
After a period of low case rates, the UK is now seeing increases in Covid outbreaks within care homes and in hospitals, among those aged 80 and over. But BA.4 and BA.5 Omicron are not thought to be any more lethal than other types of Covid. Vaccines are still saving lives.
Lots of people have built up some immunity from past infections and vaccination, which is helping to make Covid less risky overall. But the new subvariants do appear to be spreading more easily. This is partly because immunity may be waning, but also because of the genetic mutations which the virus has undergone.
Many countries have also lifted their Covid restrictions, meaning people are mixing more, which gives the virus more chances to spread.
A not unexpected increase - the more people mix, the greater the risk of infection.
Oh me too…hardly anyone wears them here and our cases are rising steadily. People look at you more when wearing a mask, and you can see the “why are you still doing this?” expression.
there’s an emotional saturation point that many people reach where they have had enough of masks; restrictions and no socializing and just wanna be normal again!
Fauci is the USA equivalent of Vallance. Apparently the approval authorities (MHRA FDA EMA et) don’t need to divulge their royalties / bribes / back handers
In the USA the ex MD of Pfizer is Scott Gotleib who is now the MD of Pfizer … smell the corruption?
I’m going to overlook that response, I have no wish to make you look silly.
The vaccines will have prevented many cases of Covid, and reduced the seriousness of it in many of those who still got the illness despite having the vaccine. Until they invent magic pills, vaccines are the best weapon against the virus that we have.
Nope I’m not making it up at all. In fact another discovery you might also not have seen is that the AZ vaccine is now not advised in the under 40s and has been stopped in USA, Germany, France, Denmark, Sweden and a whole load of other countries. Apparently its something to do with blood clots…
Most of the population has now been jabbed (>90%) with the vaccine (2,3 or 4 times) and they are still getting COVID. So how can people getting vaccinated be protected from COVID when they are the ones with the virus now ?
I have to admit that you are right about that; I haven’t seen it. The possible side effects of vaccines wasn’t what was being discussed, was it?
You seem to have this idea lodged in your head that if you say something, it somehow turns the thing into a reality. Reality just doesn’t work like that, Bread.
