Average number of COVID-19 infections drops below 4,300: Reports

For the first time since late October, the average number of new Covid-19 infections dropped below 4,300, according to figures published by the Sciensano Institute of Public Health on Friday morning.

Between 3 & 9 May, an average of 4,296 new daily Covid-19 infections were identified, a 4% drop from the previous seven days. The positivity rate now sits at 24%, meaning just under one in four(4) tests have a positive result.

The highly contagious Omicron variant, Omicron BA.2, now accounts for 95.1% of all cases.

During the same week, an average of 11.3 patients suffering from Covid-19 died on a daily basis, down by 32% from the past week. The overall number of deaths in Belgium since the beginning of the pandemic amounts to 31,613.

This figure also added people who died of some another reason of death, but who happened to be infected, which means there may be an overestimate of Covid-19 deaths caused by the virus.

Between 6 & 12 May, an average of 112.3 patients suffering from Covid-19 were admitted to hospitals each day — down 17% from the past seven(7) days.

This number shows how many people are hospitalised directly due to the virus, not those who are admitted with another condition & then test positive for Covid-19.

On Thursday, a total of 1,683 people were in Belgian hospitals due to an infection, 28 fewer than on Wednesday, and the lowest since the start of November.

Meanwhile, the overall number of people being diagnosed in intensive care sits at 105 (-6). The number of patients in intensive care(ICU) has remained below 200 since 9 March.

This number shows all patients who tested positive for Covid-19, including those who were first admitted with a different condition.