Covid: Record Wales hospital waits and warning over free test cuts
- Published
Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Thursday evening. We'll have another update for you in the morning.
1. Record Wales waiting times for 20th month in a row
The numbers on waiting lists for non-urgent hospital treatment in Wales have hit record levels again for the 20th month in a row. There were 683,331 on December's list, although the latest monthly rise was the smallest since the pandemic began. But people waiting the longest - more than nine months - rose by 2,664 to a record 244,331. Marie Morgan, from Carmarthenshire, has been told she is high priority but has been waiting four years for a hip operation.
2. NI care home visiting restrictions relaxed
Restrictions around visiting care homes in Northern Ireland have been further eased, the nation's health minister has confirmed. Robin Swann said there will no longer be a restriction on the number of people who may visit - but visits remain limited to two households per day. Overnight stays will now also be facilitated for care home residents.
3. England alone cannot end free tests, warns minister
"England alone" cannot decide to scale back or end free Covid lateral flow tests (LFTs), Wales' health minister has warned. It comes after a UK minister said earlier that ending free tests was the "direction of travel". But Eluned Morgan said such a move for England, made by UK ministers, would affect Wales, which has already paid for many tests. Huge numbers of LFTs are used daily across the UK, for example by people working in education, health and social care, and those visiting vulnerable friends and relatives.
4. Your child Covid jab questions answered
The UK government has said children aged between five and 11 in England will be offered a low-dose Covid vaccine. The same will also happen in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland. So, what are the benefits - and how can you be sure about the long-term side effects of such a new vaccine? Our health correspondents Smitha Mundasad and Philippa Roxby answer some of your questions.
5. More than 51,000 new Covid cases recorded in UK
A further 51,899 coronavirus cases have been reported in the UK, according to the government's daily figures. There have also been another 183 deaths within 28 days of a positive test. The latest figures, external show that deaths have decreased by 25.6% from the previous week (4 to 10 February), with 1,063 recorded in the last seven days, a decrease of 366. Cases have dropped by 26.6% from the previous week, with 340,145 recorded between 11 and 17 February, a decrease of 123,396.
And there's more...
How new drugs are taming the Covid-19 virus.
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