Current Covid infection levels remain VERY HIGH, with at least 1 in 102 people in England infected with Covid as of 4 August. However, all the available data suggests the ‘Late Summer Wave’ of Covid is beginning to decline. See below for more on how we calculated this.
The risk of meeting a Covid-infected person in your everyday life remains VERY HIGH – the decline in Covid infection levels has not yet significantly reduced the number of infected people in the community. All Covid precautions should continue to be taken to protect your health and the health of those around you. Although the Late Summer Wave seems to have burnt its way through the population, it is impossible to predict whether Covid levels will continue to fall or rise again in the future. Covid is never going away until we control transmission by providing clean air.
As an example of the current risk of catching Covid, a typical busy supermarket will have around 3 infected people breathing out virus for you to breathe in. In a full single decker bus, there will be 1 infected person breathing out virus. In a busy train carriage, there will be around 2 infected people breathing out virus. Remember, this is based on a statistical analysis and the real risk could be higher, for example if a group of infected people are sharing your train or bus. This is why we advise you to wear a respiratory filter mask in public places and on public transport. Cloth and surgical masks do not protect you.
We have based our estimate of current Covid-19 infection levels in England on all the available data, including the Notification of Infectious Diseases (NOIDS) data dated 4 August. We feel that our estimate of roughly 1 in 102 people in England with Covid as of 4 August is a credible assessment of the current risk for the purposes of giving disabled and clinically vulnerable people information to manage their own risk. If you would like to know more about our methodology, please contact us.
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.
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.