Four-week trend shows continued fall in daily Covid-19 deaths, hospitalizations

The number of people with coronavirus admitted to a hospital over the previous two days was 86, split evenly between Sunday and Monday, according to new data provided by public health agency RIVM. The data shows a continued decline in new hospitalizations since March 24, when 560 people were admitted in a single day.

In total, 9,897 people who tested positive have been treated in a hospital, with the RIVM acknowledging 118 more hospitalizations on Tuesday. While many of those admissions took place between Friday and Monday, at least one dated as far back as March 15.

At least 33 people with a coronavirus infection died on Monday and 72 died the day before, numbers which will be revised upwards as more information from hospitals and care facilities is reported to the health agency. The RIVM said that they learned of 165 more deaths in the past 24 hours, with most of those cases occurring in the past five days, and some stretching back to March 27.

To date, 3,916 people with coronavirus have died in the Netherlands.

Of the 174,481 who have been tested for coronavirus since the end of February, 34,134 have recorded a positive result. That represents an increase of 729 over figures released on Monday. Last week, over 39,500 people were tested for the virus, the most in a single week, and more than double the number of people tested over a one-week period in mid-March.

A Van der Valk hotel in Urmond that has been serving as a temporary hospital for coronavirus patients not sick enough to be in the actual hospital, but too sick to stay at home, will close again on Monday. There is currently no need for it to stay open, as the number of new patients in Zuid-Limburg is starting to decrease, the hotel said, according to NOS. Ten patients are currently staying in the hotel. The expectation is that they will be able to go home, or be transferred to another care institution by the end fo the week. The hotel can reopen as a hospital at any time if it is necessary, the hotel said.

As the number of new coronavirus cases in the Netherlands started to fall, the government began looking for advice on which measures can be relaxed. The Outbreak Management Team advised that childcare institutions can reopen fully and primary schools partially after the May holidays. It also said that kids, teens and athletes in individual sports should be able to start training and playing sports again under certain conditions. The OMT advised against restarting team sports. It is also a bad idea to relax visiting arrangements at nursing homes, the OMT said.

The OMT's advice is not binding and is mainly based on medical grounds. In deciding which advice to follow, the government also has to take other factors - like stalling education and the social impact of isolation - into account.

Prime Minister Mark Rutte will hold a press conference at 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday to explain how the Netherlands will continue the fight against the coronavirus.