Covid hospital total at 60-day low; Vaccination total nears 700K

The total number of patients being treated for Covid-19 in Dutch hospitals on Friday fell by two percent to 1,904, the lowest since December 14. The figure was seven percent lower than a week ago, which suggests that patient levels could dip below 1,770 by next Friday.

Still, patient coordination office LCPS remained concerned about the B117 coronavirus variant, now the dominant strain in the Netherlands. The reproduction of that variant of the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus has proven to be more contagious than the strain which had been prevalent in the Netherlands last year.

Friday's total included 1,370 patients in regular care, a net decrease of 45, and 534 in intensive care, a net decrease of three since Thursday. Over the past 24 hours, hospitals admitted 183 more coronavirus patients into regular care, and 32 into the ICU system, the latter being a two-week high.

The Dutch government also estimated that 694,888 doses of the coronavirus vaccine have been administered since January 6. That rose by 34,604 in a day. As of Sunday, 66,409 people had received the second dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Thus about 3.5 to 4 percent of people in the Netherlands have received at least their first shot of either the Pfizer or Moderna vaccines against Covid-19. AstraZeneca vaccine doses were first in use starting on Friday.

Public health agency RIVM also said that 4,385 more people tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 infection, down slightly from Thursday and level with last week's tally. The moving average shifted up slightly to 3,461.

To date, 1,021,643 people have tested positive in the Netherlands for the coronavirus, including 14,727 people who died from Covid-19. The latter includes an increase of 66 reported on Friday by the RIVM, slightly above the moving average of 62.

So far this week, deaths from the coronavirus disease have risen by ten percent compared to the previous week. Coronavirus infections have fallen by 17 percent this calendar week, a period which includes severe disruptions to testing operations due to the winter storm.