NHS chiefs do not believe that the threshold for new Covid-19 restrictions has been crossed despite a surge in hospital admissions.
The number of patients with the coronavirus on wards in England rose to 11,452 yesterday, the highest since February and up 61 per cent in a week.
While concerned by the increase in admissions, NHS leaders have been reassured by the fact that serious illness among the elderly has not risen significantly.
Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, told The Times: “Trust chief executives are saying we should be careful interpreting the daily Covid hospital data.
“Although the numbers are going up and going up increasingly rapidly, the absence of large numbers of seriously ill older people is providing significant reassurance.”
Despite the rise in admissions, the number of coronavirus patients in intensive care remains relatively stable at 782. The 11,452 patients in hospital with Covid-19 is significantly lower than the 34,336 at the height of the second wave in January.
https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/no-need-for-more-covid-curbs-say-nhs-chiefs-zlw8n69dq