Coronavirus linked to 40 more deaths in England and Wales than previously reported, ONS figures show
Covid-19 has been mentioned on 210 death certificates in England and Wales, linking it to 40 more deaths than previously reported, according to the Office for National Statistics.
This compares with 170 coronavirus-related deaths reported by NHS England and Public Health Wales.
Both figures are up to and including March 20.
This difference between the numbers published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and those published by NHS England and Public Health Wales is because of different methods of counting and reporting, the ONS said.
The ONS death figures are based on the number of deaths registered in England and Wales, where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate as “deaths involving Covid-19”.
The number includes all deaths, not just those in hospitals.
There is usually a delay of at least five days between a death occurring and registration.
The figures published by NHS England and Public Health Wales are for deaths only among hospital patients who have tested positive for Covid-19.
These include deaths that have not yet been registered.
Separate new figures from ONS show for the 108 deaths registered up to March 20 where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, 45 were people aged 85 and over while 34 were people aged 75 to 84.
A total of 21 deaths were people aged 65 to 74 and seven were people aged 45 to 64.
One death was among somebody aged 15 to 44.
It comes as the UK was warned there was a "long way to go" and to continue following social distancing measures staunchly.
Transport Secretary told the BBC the UK is “holding our own” when compared with other European countries on charts measuring from the first day of 50 confirmed cases.
But he added: “There is a long way to go.
“I know people are seeing two or three days of the chart coming down but I don’t expect that to continue.
“We are not at the peak yet and it is really important we continue following this advice.”
There have been at least 22,141 confirmed coronavirus cases in the UK since the start of the outbreak.
However, the actual number of people to have been infected could be far higher, experts have suggested.
