The transmission rate for new coronavirus cases in Brighton has fallen yet again with rates almost halving, although officials continue to implore the public to stay concerned. In terms of active cases, there were 757 new cases identified over the latest seven- day period at a new rate of 206.2 per 100,000 people across the Brighton and Hove district. In comparison, the previous week was recorded as seeing 1,228 cases for a rate of 422.2 per 100,000 people, with the week prior to that reporting 1,816 new case which put the transmission at 624.3 per 100,000 people.
Despite this, there has been multiple reports, including from the Director of Public Health In Brighton and Hove, Alistair Hill, that the death toll would likely continue to rise over the coming weeks and that positive numbers do not indicate the ability to lower your guard quite yet. During a council meeting on the 28 th January, Hill announced that 279 local residents had died with Covid-19 on their death certificate between late April and mid-January with at least a couple of dozen if not more deaths in the preceding march as Coronavirus began to sweep the nation.
Figures from local medical facilities such as Royal Sussex County Hospital and Princess Royal Hospital show 22 people having died in the last week with 41 perishing in the week prior. Brighton and Sussex University Hospitals, the local NHS trust for the region has recorded 376 deaths in Covid positive patients in the previous 28 days.
Director Hill showed promise and cautious optimism towards the vaccination programme, praising the efforts and that it was well underway, however in order to keep cases down and continue to move forward it its imperative that social distancing remain vital and in operation where ever possible for the foreseeable future, until the government and the statistics say otherwise.
However all this being said ,readers should write to Caroline Lucas to demand an end to lockdowns as businesses continue to go bust , unemplolymnet is sky rocketing while the homeless become even more visible and the mental health is at an all time low.
