Spain's Covid Incidence Rate Drops Below 2,000 For First Time This Year
Health News
Published: 08 February 2022 17:03 CET
Latest figures from the Ministry of Health have shown that Spain’s Covid infection rate has fallen for the first time this year in a sign that the country has turned a corner in the fight against the virus.
Official figures published by the ministry on Monday, February 7, show that the cumulative incidence rate which is measured in infections per 100,000 now stands at 1,997.
Monday’s figures show that there were 120,818 new Coronavirus cases registered, however, this was significantly less than the same day in the previous week when 182,123 were identified.
Over the past two weeks, the ministry data shows that there were 946,655 new positive cases bringing the total number to 10,395,471 since the pandemic began.
Cumulative incidence rate by region
The regional health authorities in Spain all submit their own data, however, the recently published figures suggest that some regions are coping with the pandemic better than others.
The region of Andalucia currently boasts the lowest numbers by far, registering just 701 cases per 100,000 people. This is then followed by the Canaries with 798 and Madrid with 1,160.
Hospitalisations
The number of people being hospitalised by Covid has fallen steadily in recent weeks.
Monday’s figures show that there are currently 15,991 recorded as needing hospital treatment for Covid in comparison to the same day last week when there were 18,087 in need of hospital treatment
There are currently 1,838 people requiring intensive care which is significantly lower than last week's figure of 2,054.
Covid patients are currently taking up 12.83% of all hospital beds compared to 14.52% just one week ago.
Vaccination campaign
As of Monday, 38,327,784 Spanish citizens have now been fully vaccinated against Covid equating to 90.9% of the population over the age of 12.
Spain has also been successful in administering the booster jab to its citizens. As of Monday, 22,548,650 people have now received their booster vaccination or 47.6% of the population.
Sadly, another 335 people lost their lives to the virus over the weekend, bringing the total number of deaths to 94,570 since the start of the pandemic.
Face mask restrictions outside removed from February 10
The recent fall in infections prompted the Spanish government to announce that it would be lifting the requirement to wear face masks outdoors, which has been in place since December.
This particular policy has been one of the most controversial measures to date with the majority of the public against the move and leading experts doubting its effectiveness in reducing the spread of the virus.
Source
https://www.sanidad.gob.es/profesionales/saludPublica/ccayes/alertasActual/nCov/documentos/Actualizacion_558_COVID-19.pdf
https://www.sanidad.gob.es/profesionales/saludPublica/ccayes/alertasActual/nCov/documentos/Actualizacion_554_COVID-19.pdf
Image Credit: Pool Moncloa/Borja Puig de la Bellacasa
