Coronavirus UK: Death toll hits 34,770 with 134 new fatalities - Daily Mail

UK announces another drop in coronavirus deaths: Preliminary figures reveal 134 more victims - half the number a fortnight ago

• Department of Health chiefs have yet to reveal the final daily COVID-19 death toll, which is likely to be higher 
• The preliminary tally is calculated by adding up the individual counts announced by each of the home nations
• NHS England today recorded 122 more deaths in hospitals - but this does not take into account other settings
• Across all settings, Scotland announced only two more deaths, while Wales had four and Northern Ireland six
• Here’s how to help people impacted by Covid-19

By Stephen Matthews Health Editor For Mailonline

Published: 14:11 BST, 18 May 2020 | Updated: 15:14 BST, 18 May 2020

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Britain's coronavirus death toll continued its downward trend today after officials announced 134 more victims, taking the official number of fatalities closer to the 35,000-mark. 

Department of Health chiefs have yet to reveal the final toll, which is likely to be higher. The preliminary tally is calculated by adding up the individual counts of each of the home nations. 

NHS England today recorded 122 more deaths in hospitals. Elsewhere in the UK, Scotland announced only two more deaths, while Wales had four and Northern Ireland six across all settings. 

Officials yesterday declared 170 new deaths, the lowest tally since March 24 - the day after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the lockdown. In comparison, 210 deaths were recorded last Monday, as well as 288 on the same day the week before - meaning the preliminary toll is half of the final count announced a fortnight ago.

Numbers released on Sundays and Mondays are usually smaller due to a delay in processing over the weekend. And the NHS warned the notification system used by hospital trusts did not operate for a period of time on Saturday, meaning today's numbers are expected to be slightly higher. 

In other developments to Britain's coronavirus crisis today:

• Ryanair chief Michael O'Leary launched a savage attack on the government's plans for 14-day quarantine on arrivals to the UK;
• Thousands more people have gone back to work as the transport network capacity is ramped up to help social distancing;
• People should self-isolate if they lose their sense of taste or smell because it is now an official symptom of coronavirus, the government announced; 
• Unions were asked to work with ministers to reopen schools amid fears poor children are doing less home learning every day than their better-off counterparts.

Department of Health chiefs have yet to reveal the final toll, which is likely to be higher. The preliminary tally is calculated by adding up the individual counts of each of the home nations

Figures showed Italy's peak occurred on March 27, with almost 15,000 fatalities that week. Analysis showed the total number of deaths was 103 per cent higher than the average for the same week in previous years. Data also revealed England hit the peak two weeks later, which chimed with claims throughout the early outbreak that Britain was a fortnight behind Italy. It showed there were almost 20,000 deaths in the week ending April 10, a 109 per cent jump on the same week in years before. Figures are the most recently available from the national statistical bodies of each nation

This chart shows the excess death rate of ten European nations as calculated by EU-backed monitoring project EuroMOMO, with England in a clear lead. The figures are for Week 16, which ended April 19

BRITS SHOULD SELF-ISOLATE IF THEY LOSE THEIR SENSE OF SMELL OR TASTE, OFFICIALS ANNOUNCE 

People should now self-isolate if they lose their sense of smell or taste because it is a definite symptom of coronavirus, the government announced today.

In the first change to the policy since the beginning of the outbreak, officials have added a third tell-tale sign to the NHS's definition of COVID-19.

The chief medical officers of the UK say anosmia - the scientific name for the loss of the senses - is clearly linked to the virus and should be treated with the same amount of caution as a fever or a new cough, the only other two official symptoms.

Angered doctors welcomed the move but said it had 'taken too long', with the UK lagging behind other countries and the World Health Organization after nose and throat specialists first sounded the alarm about this in March.

One researcher who runs Imperial College London's COVID Symptom Tracker app said up to 70,000 current coronavirus patients are roaming free or still working because the government is not warning people about minor symptoms.

Professor Tim Spector said his team have linked 14 symptoms to the virus but the NHS and Department of Health are only recognising three.

Ministers were last week warned that as many as one in four patients are unaware they have COVID-19 because they don't get a cough or fever, but do suffer from anosmia or other less well known signs.

Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, the deputy chief medical officer for England, said officials hope adding the symptom to the list will help medics to detect three per cent more patients.

'With a cough or fever, sensitivity was around 91 per cent,' he said in a telephone briefing this morning. 'By adding anosmia, in terms of case pick-up, we think that might go to 94 per cent.'

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Department of Health's final official death toll announced yesterday was 34,636. This included 28,000 fatalities in hospitals - the rest occurred in other settings, such as care homes. 

Officials counted only 170 new deaths, which was the lowest daily count since March 24 (149). The count does not reflect how many people succumbed to the illness in the past 24 hours.

Instead, it relates only to how many deaths were registered over the last day. This process can take several weeks because of a recording lag. 

NHS England - whose tally is not always the same as the figure the DH reports for hospitals because of a difference in how fatalities are recorded - today announced 122 more deaths. 

In comparison, yesterday the organisation announced just 90 COVID-19 fatalities. Officials said this was because the Covid Patient Notification System 'did not operate for a period of time on Saturday'.

As a result, NHS England admitted today's toll - which included seven patients who had no underlying conditions - would be slightly higher to reflect that.    

The figures come after the government today announced that Britons who lose their sense of smell or taste should self-isolate because it has now been added to the list of official symptoms.

In the first change to the policy since the beginning of the outbreak, officials confirmed anosmia as the third tell-tale sign of COVID-19.

The chief medical officers of the UK say losing the sense of smell or taste should be treated with the same amount of caution as a fever or a new cough, the only other two official symptoms.

Angered doctors welcomed the move but said it had 'taken too long', with the UK lagging behind other countries and the World Health Organization after nose and throat specialists first sounded the alarm about this in March.  

Experts today also warned a working coronavirus vaccine is unlikely to be ready this year, as they told people not to have 'false expectations' that Britons could get a jab by September. 

Both Oxford University and Imperial College London are working on vaccines with the former now having done a deal with pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca to mass produce its effort if it is shown to be effective.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma revealed yesterday the government is hoping to be in a position to roll-out a mass vaccination programme in the Autumn of this year.

But Professor Robin Shattock, one of the experts involved in the Imperial initiative, urged caution as he said there are 'no guarantees' a working vaccine will be ready for mass production until next year at the earliest. 

In other developments today, Nicola Sturgeon said Scotland could start taking 'concrete steps' to ease lockdown at the end of the month - which would be nearly three weeks after Boris Johnson triggered his exit plan.

The First Minister said she had stuck with the draconian restrictions 'a bit longer' to ensure that the outbreak was 'suppressed'.

But she said she expected the 'journey to normality' will be able to begin at the end of May, despite warning that the disease has 'not gone away''.

The measures - being unveiled as part of a 'route map' on Thursday - could be broadly similar to the blueprint published by the PM last week. 

That has seen people encouraged to go back to work where possible, as well as slightly looser rules on sports and limited contact between households.

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2020-05-18 14:14:49Z
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