Lowest number of coronavirus infections since Oct. 20
For the first time in nearly six months, fewer than five thousand people tested positive for the coronavirus in a one-day period. Dutch health authority RIVM said that 4,947 people were diagnosed with the infection between Tuesday and Wednesday morning. That lowered the seven-day moving average for the 33rd consecutive day.
The moving average dipped to 8,382, nearly half of what it was one week earlier. The average was at its lowest point since November 4, according to raw data from the organization. Still, about 60.8 percent of people tested positive in recent days.
Testing has been on the decline, particularly as the government no longer advises people to visit the GGD for an official confirmation of a positive self test. Fewer than 14,100 people were tested each day from April 5-11. That was the lowest reported figure since August 2020, just months after testing became available on a wide scale.
The three cities with the most new infections were Amsterdam (291), Rotterdam (185), and The Hague (166). Each was over one hundred below average, with the averages in each city having dropped by over 40 percent in a week.
There were 1,362 patients with Covid-19 in Dutch hospitals on Wednesday afternoon, a net reduction of 61 after accounting for new admissions, discharges, and deaths. The total was 16 percent lower compared to a week earlier.
The patient tally includes 89 people in intensive care units, down five in a day. That was near the 38 week low set on Monday. The other 1,273 patients were in regular care wards, a net decrease of 56.
Hospitals admitted 145 patients with the disease between Tuesday and Wednesday afternoon, including six sent to intensive care. Hospitals admitted 144 patients with the disease on average each of the past seven days, down 18 percent in a week.
