Daily Covid infections rise by 4,000 to 13,460 as Omicron advances in Amsterdam
A total of 13,460 people tested positive for the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus between Tuesday and Wednesday morning, over 4,000 more than the previous 24-hour period. It was one of the sharpest day-to-day increases since the record-setting surge in infections which started in November with the Delta variant of the virus.
The RIVM predicted the highly-contagious Omicron variant will displace the Delta variant nationally by the end of the year. That is already happening at the local level in Amsterdam. The capital led all cities with 814 new infections reported on Wednesday. The local branch of the GGD said that data from Monday showed that about 48 percent of new cases in the city are being caused by the new variant, which was first discovered in South Africa last month.
Last Thursday, Amsterdam University Medical Center virologist Menno de Jong predicted the Omicron variant would become dominant in the capital early this week. RIVM director Jaap van Dissel told Parliament on Tuesday that the health institute's research suggests that 10 to 15 percent of all infections in the Netherlands are linked to the Omicron variant.
Even with a high number of infections relative to this weekend, the national seven-day moving average managed to fall slightly to 13,582. That was the 17th consecutive day the figure has decreased. It was still about 15 percent lower compared to a week ago, according to raw data. A combination of raw and corrected data put the figure at 13,460.
Testing figures continued to fall, with the GGD carrying out about 53,000 tests per day. That's the lowest that figure has been in roughly six weeks. During the seven-day period ending on Monday, about 23.6 percent of people tested by the GGD were given a positive diagnosis, slightly lower than the record of 24.1 percent.
Aside from Amsterdam, the cities of Rotterdam (532), The Hague (381), and Utrecht (345) had the highest number of infections. Amsterdam's total of 814 was about a fourth above average, while the tally in Rotterdam and The Hague was roughly 10 percent above average. Utrecht's latest infection total was about a third above its average.
Covid-19 hospitalizations and hospital occupancy continued on a steady decline. The patient coordination office (LCPS) cautioned that the effects caused by a rise in Omicron infections was "unclear, but the influx of new patients is expected to increase again in January 2022."
There were 2,275 patients with Covid-19 in hospitals on Wednesday afternoon. That was down 4 percent compared to the previous day, after accounting for new admissions, discharges and deaths. The hospital total remained 14 percent lower than a week earlier. A similar decrease would bring the total below 2,000 for the first time since mid-November.
The total includes 601 patients in intensive care units, 20 of whom were still being treated in German hospitals. The ICU total fell by 14 in a day. The other 1,674 patients were in regular care wards, a net decrease of 80. The combined hospital total has fallen nine times in the last ten days.
Dutch hospitals admitted 212 patients with Covid-19 in the past 24 hours, including 28 sent directly to an intensive care unit. On average, hospitals took on 212 patients in each of the past seven days, 26 percent lower than a week ago.