Welsh Conservative Shadow Minister for Health, Angela Burns AM, is calling for more transparency in the Covid19 data announced by the Welsh Government, especially on the number of people who have died from the virus.
Public Health England has developed and is using a new method for reporting the number of deaths from Covid-19 in the UK Government’s daily briefings to include all settings. In Wales, based on the numbers from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) 1,016 people have died up to April 17. However, just today the Welsh Government are reporting that 997 people have died.
Commenting, Angela Burns AM, said:
“After the issues of under reporting of deaths by the Welsh Government-run Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board in North Wales and by Hywel Dda Health Board in West Wales, surely the Welsh Government should be going above and beyond to ensure that the number of reported deaths due to Covid19 are as accurate as they can be.
“This week the Welsh Government has been looking at how we can remove the lockdown restrictions and yet we don’t have a clear and full picture of how many people are still dying on a daily basis. Surely this needs to be put in place – along with a massive increase in testing – before we can say how we should move forward.”
Notes:
Public Health England has developed a new method for reporting the deaths from coronavirus which now includes all settings, including care homes and the wider community, helping us to better understand the impact of the disease so we can ensure that people in care homes get the best possible support.
- Public Health England has developed a new method of reporting daily coronavirus deaths, to give a more complete number of those who have died from the virus. The Government believes this is among the most comprehensive in the world.
- The figure will include deaths that have occurred in all settings in England where there has been a positive coronavirus test, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community.
- We are publishing this data because we are committed to maximum transparency.
