Dutch Covid-19 hospital cases near 8-month low; Vaccines on pace to beat weekly target

The waning Covid-19 hospital figures in the Netherlands continued a month-long decline on Friday with the total number of admitted patients dipping to 1,065. That was the lowest that figure has been since October 7.

The total fell by three percent since Thursday afternoon, patient coordination office LCPS said. The office said there were 688 people in regular nursing wards, a net decrease of 16.

Another 377 Covid-19 patients were in intensive care units, after a net decrease of 17. The ICU total alone was at its lowest point since October 18.

Combined, the hospital total was down by 26 percent compared to a week ago. Should that trend continue for another seven days, there will be fewer than 800 Covid-19 patients in care by next Friday.

The average daily number of patients admitted for the coronavirus disease also fell to 83, with 77 admitted between the afternoons of Thursday and Friday. The moving average has consistently fallen since the beginning of May.

The distribution of Covid-19 vaccinations also improved this calendar week, with 752,357 jabs given, including an estimated 175,196 on Thursday. The Netherlands was on base to beat its weekly projection of 1.04 million, possibly by several hundred thousand.

An estimated 10,109,509 vaccine shots were administered in the country through Thursday.

Public health agency RIVM said on Friday that another 2,440 people tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus. That brought the seven-day moving average down to 2,676, seven percent lower in a day, and 15 percent lower than a week ago.

The three cities with the most new infections were Rotterdam (167), Amsterdam (150), and The Hague (101). All three were above their weekly averages.

To date, people in the Netherlands have tested positive for the coronavirus infection 1,659,399 times.