Residents catching COVID-19 more than once in Cheshire West and Chester

Data on COVID-19 infections has improved to include residents who catch the virus more than once.

The way that Cheshire West and Chester Council reports infections has been altered to match changes made nationally to include possible reinfections.

Previously, case numbers published on the UK Health Security Agency’s (UKHSA) daily dashboard only counted positive cases once, when someone first tested positive for the virus.

Now, positive tests for any variant of COVID-19 after 90 days are now considered as reinfection episodes and so counted again.  Positive tests within a 90-day time period are considered part of the same case, so only counted once.

Ian Ashworth, Director of Public Health for Cheshire West and Chester Council, said: “It’s really important that we have as accurate a picture as we can of infections locally, including this data on reinfections.

“The national data shows us that reinfections were low until the start of the Omicron wave.  It is now estimated nationally that about 10% of cases are reinfections – so we have seen an increase in our rates to reflect that.

“The historical data has also been re-calculated in the light of this, so past rates have also been replaced and are higher.

“In Cheshire West and Chester, where the COVID-19 infection rates are already high, this reminds us that it is important to live with the virus cautiously – get your vaccines, get boosted, keep testing, wear your face coverings in busy indoor settings and open doors and windows when socialising or working with others indoors.”

UKHSA updated the national data, which is used by all local authorities in the country, on 31 January.

Before the changes, the peak seven-day infection rate for Cheshire West and Chester was 2,395 per 100,000 on 4 January 2022. With the new additional data on reinfections, this has now risen to 2,733 per 100,000.

The seven-day rate previously published up to the 25 January was 1,030 per 100,000. The rate for the same period (19 to 25 January) is now 1,156 per 100,000 in the borough.

The latest seven-day infection rate in the borough, up to 30 January, is 1,048 per 100,000.

The new data indicates that there have been 3,694 possible reinfections in the borough since the start of the pandemic in March 2020, accounting for 4% of all cases. In the seven days up to 30 January, 9% of cases are possible reinfections.

For more COVID-19 data for the borough visit:

www.cheshirewestandchester.gov.uk/covid 

...and click on ‘Daily COVID-19 statistics and cases by ward’.