Nuffield Trust response to weekly ONS registered deaths statistics

We still have some way to go. Deaths attributed to Covid-19 still account for 45% of hospital deaths and nearly four in 10 deaths in care homes.

Press release

Published: 19/05/2020

Responding to the weekly mortality stats from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for the week ending 8 May 2020, Nuffield Trust Deputy Director of Research Sarah Scobie said:

"We are now seeing the number of deaths across all settings fall week to week. While this reflects efforts to slow the spread of the virus, it is a sad fact that the number of registered deaths is a third higher than we would typically expect to see at this time of year.

"We still have some way to go. Deaths attributed to Covid-19 still account for 45% of hospital deaths and nearly four deaths per every 10 in care homes.

"While the NHS thankfully no longer needs to treat as many very sick Covid-19 patients, people must remember that it now faces the difficult new challenge of containing the disease. This will require many big changes to the way things work, with a lasting impact on waiting times."

Notes to editors

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