The number of Covid-19 cases in care homes might be falling, statistics published by Public Health England (PHE) suggest.
There were a total of 971 respiratory disease outbreaks in the week ending April 26 – down from more than 1,200 the previous week.
Those figures include all outbreaks of all respiratory diseases, but we do know that 458 people tested positive for Covid-19.
The figures chime with separate statistics released yesterday that looked at the number of care homes reporting at least one Covid-19 case.
More than 1,000 homes were added to that list in the week ending 20 April, compared to 808 in the week ending 28 April.
It’s still too early to say for certain whether the situation is improving. The PHE figures may be revised upwards in subsequent weeks due to delays in reporting.
It is, however, an encouraging sign, given how rapidly the disease appears to have been spreading in care homes across the country.