The number of Covid-19 patients ending up in hospital or requiring life-saving treatment is continuing to decline in Belgium, while all other major coronavirus indicators are going in the right direction.
Between 23 February and 1 March, an average of 137.3 patients suffering from Covid-19 were admitted to hospitals each day – a decrease of 29% on the seven days previous, according to the figures published by the Sciensano Public Health Institute on Wednesday morning.
This number reflects how many people end up in hospital specifically because of the virus, not those who are admitted with another condition and then test positive for the coronavirus.
On Tuesday, a total of 2,189 people were in Belgian hospitals due to an infection, 130 fewer than on Monday. This number covers all patients who tested positive for Covid-19, including those who were first admitted with a different condition. 224 people were being treated in intensive care (-19) and 194 (-8) patients were on a ventilator.
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For the Consultative Committee to issue Code Yellow on the coronavirus barometer during its next meeting on Friday, allowing for more measures to be relaxed, the number of Covid-19 hospitalisations must drop below 65 and the number of beds occupied in intensive care should be below 300.
New infections dropped below 6,500
Between 20 and 26 February, an average of 6,471 new coronavirus infections were identified every day – a 30% decrease on the previous seven days.
The Omicron variant currently accounts for 61% of all cases in Belgium, down 9% since last week, while the Omicron BA.2 variant is accounting for more than 32%. Just under 7% of all cases are with the Delta variant.
The average number of PCR tests taken per day in the same period declined by 18% to 38,039. The positivity rate now sits at 19.5%, meaning fewer than one in five tests have a positive result.
Pacheco test and vaccination centre in Brussels. Credit: The Brussels Times/ Lauren Walker
During the same week, an average of 23.1 Covid-19 patients died on a daily basis, down by 42% since last week. The total number of deaths in Belgium since the start of the pandemic amounts to 30,121.
The official death statistics include people who died of another cause of death, but who happened to be infected, meaning they are an overestimate of the deaths caused by the virus.
According to the latest update from the World Health Organisation (WHO), during the week of 21 through 27 February 2022, the number of new Covid-19 cases and deaths recorded globally continued to decline by 16% and 10% respectively in comparison with the previous week.
Reproduction rate, incidence, and total vaccinations
The reproduction rate (Rt) has further decreased to 0.78. This figure represents the average number of people that contract the virus from each infected person, and when it is below 1, it means that the epidemic is losing ground in Belgium.
The incidence (the number of new cases per 100,000 inhabitants) is continuing to drop and now sits at 957 over the past 14 days.
As of Sunday, more than 9 million people are fully vaccinated – 89% of Belgium's adult population and 79% of the total population.
Meanwhile, more than 7 million people have received a booster dose of a coronavirus vaccine, representing 74% of over-18s and 61% of the entire population. The majority of adults should have had the opportunity to get a booster dose by March 2022.
A study from the United Kingdom's Health and Security Agency (UKHSA) showed that booster vaccinations are estimated to have prevented 105,600 people from ending up in hospitals following a Covid-19 infection since mid-December.
