Covid infection levels in England remain Extremely High, with between 1 in 32 and 1 in 43 people in England infected with Covid as of 10 January. It remains essential that everyone takes precautions to avoid catching Covid.
A range of data shows that ‘we have passed the peak’, i.e. that the near-record levels of Covid infection seen at Christmas are now declining. The number of people infected with Covid today (18 January) is probably between 1 in 42 and 1 in 69. However, even at these lower levels, the risk of catching Covid in your everyday life remains Extremely High.
As an example of the current risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have between 4 and 9 infected people breathing out virus for you to breathe in. In a full single decker bus, there will be 1 or 2 infected people breathing out virus. In a busy train carriage, there will be between 2 and 5 infected people breathing out virus. In these circumstances, unless you wear a respiratory filter mask, you are extremely likely to catch Covid. Cloth and surgical masks do not protect you.
To add to the risk, there are 2 new variants of the Covid virus circulating. This means that even if you have had Covid recently, of have recently been vaccinated or boosted, you can still catch Covid again and be seriously ill. There is no such thing as immunity against Covid – the virus changes every time people develop immunity.
Remember, Covid is airborne: the virus spreads mainly through the air. An infected person in an unventilated place creates a large invisible cloud of virus which hangs in the air like smoke, ready for you to breathe in. Because the NHS has not improved the ventilation in its buildings, hospitals and GP practices are extremely dangerous places to catch Covid. NHS staff are now required to work even if they have Covid and there are no Covid precautions in place at most NHS buildings. Do avoid hospitals and GP practices unless your visit is essential and wear a tight-fitted filter mask (FFP2 or FFP3) or respirator all the time if you have to go there.
BuDS strongly recommends that disabled and clinically vulnerable people avoid public transport and indoor spaces unless they are wearing a filter mask (FFP2/3) or respirator. For more advice on how to avoid catching Covid, use this link.
We have used data taken from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) Winter Infection Survey as the starting point for the estimates above. The last Winter Infection Survey covers up to 10 January. To give disabled and clinically vulnerable people a credible assessment of the current risk (as of 14 January), we have used data from the Notification of Infectious Diseases (NOIDS) report dated 14 January. We have used the NOIDS data to calculate the likely changes in national Covid infection levels. If you would like to know more about our methodology, please contact us.
To understand more about our Covid risk levels and what they mean, use this link.
For more Covid information and help, please contact BuDS and we will be happy to help.