Fewer than 3,000 Covid-19 patients in hospital for first time in one month

Fewer than 3,000 Covid-19 patients in hospital for first time in one month
Credit: Belga

For the first time since the end of January, the number of people in hospital with a coronavirus infection dropped below 3,000.

Between 14 and 20 February, an average of 210 patients infected with the coronavirus were admitted to hospitals every day, according to preliminary figures distributed by the cabinet of Federal Health Minister Frank Vandenbroucke.

This number reflects how many people end up in hospital specifically because of the virus, not people who end up in hospital with another condition and then test positive for the coronavirus.

On Sunday, 2,964 Covid-19 patients were being treated in hospital – 33 more than on Saturday. This number does include all patients who tested positive for Covid-19, including those who were first admitted with a different condition.

The number of people in intensive care dropped to 320, the lowest since the start of November last year.

New cases continue to drop

Between 11 and 17 February, an average of 10,229 Covid-19 infections were recorded each day, a 40% decrease compared to the previous week. The latest figures show Omicron accounts for 80% of all cases in Belgium.

During the same week, a total of 325,155 tests were carried out in the country, of which 82,552 had a positive result. The positivity ratio in that period was 25.7%.

Sciensano does not publish an update of the figures on its dashboard on Sunday and Monday, meaning some figures are not yet consolidated. A full update of the official figures will be published on Tuesday morning. The figures included below are based on the latest updates available.

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The number of deaths continues to rise despite all other major indicators decreasing. Between 9 and 15 February, an average of 48 people died every day due to an infection, 6% more than in the previous week.

During this same period, the reproduction rate (Rt) was 0.83, a 5% decrease since the previous week. If this number is below 1, it means that the virus circulation is slowing down in the country.

Meanwhile, as of Thursday (the last available data), more than 9.01 million people have been fully vaccinated, which equates to 78% of the total population and 89% of over-18s.

Almost 6.9 million people have received a booster dose, the equivalent of 60% of the entire population, and 73% of all adults in Belgium.


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