The daily number of new Covid-19 cases has dropped below 6,000 in Belgium, while the number of new hospitalisations has decreased.
Between 16 and 22 April, an average of 5,894 new daily Covid-19 infections were identified, a 22% decrease from the seven days previous, according to the figures published by the Sciensano Public Health Institute on Tuesday.
It is worth noting that daily PCR tests also dropped by 20% to 20,390.3. The positivity rate now sits at 32.1%, meaning around one-third of all tests have a positive result.
The highly transmissible Omicron variant, Omicron BA.2, now accounts for 97.2% of all cases, up 14% from Friday last week.
During the same week, 18.7 Covid-19 patients died daily, down by 20% from the previous week. The total number of deaths in Belgium since the pandemic amounts to 31,382.
This figure also includes people who died of another cause of death but who happened to be infected, meaning they overestimate the deaths caused by the virus.
Between 19 and 25 April, an average of 176 patients suffering from Covid-19 were admitted to hospitals each day – down 16% on the seven days previous.
This number reflects how many people are hospitalised directly because of the virus, not those admitted with another condition and then test positive for Covid-19.
On Monday, 2,742 people were in Belgian hospitals due to an infection, 48 more than on Sunday (hospitalisations usually increase from Sunday to Monday).
Meanwhile, the number of people treated in intensive care sits at 165 (+9). This number covers all patients who tested positive for Covid-19, including those first admitted with a different condition.
