UK reports another 315 Covid deaths as number vaccinated nears 21 million
3 March 2021, 20:02 | Updated: 3 March 2021, 20:24
The UK has recorded another 315 coronavirus-related deaths in the past 24 hours, as the number of people who have received their first dose of a coronavirus vaccine neared 21 million.
The Government said a further 315 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Wednesday.
The Government also said that, as of 9am on Wednesday, there had been a further 6,385 lab-confirmed cases in the UK. It brings the total to 4,194,785.
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A further 204 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths reported in hospitals to 83,733, NHS England said on Wednesday.
Patients were aged between 32 and 100. All except seven, aged between 63 and 88, had known underlying health conditions.
20,703,615 protected with a 1st dose. When it’s your turn the team will have a vaccine reserved for you. 💉💉💉 https://t.co/rBWSrFMsts
— Nadhim Zahawi (@nadhimzahawi) March 3, 2021
There have also been a further 208 cases of coronavirus in Wales, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 204,196.
Public Health Wales reported another 12 deaths, taking the total in the country since the start of the pandemic to 5,356.
A further 25 people have died with Covid-19 in Ireland, National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) has said.
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It comes as the number of people receiving the first dose of a vaccine nears the 21 million mark.
Government data up to March 2 shows that of the 21,599,027 jabs given in the UK so far, 20,703,615 were first doses - a rise of 224,996 on the previous day.
Some 895,412 were second doses, an increase of 51,314 on figures released the previous day.
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A total of 18,194,919 Covid-19 vaccinations took place in England between December 8 and March 2, according to provisional NHS England data, including first and second doses, which is a rise of 208,968 on the previous day's figures.
Of this number, 17,554,700 were the first dose of a vaccine, a rise of 181,316 on the previous day, while 640,219 were a second dose, an increase of 27,652.
In further positive news, the number of Covid-19 patients in hospital in England has dropped below 10,000 for the first time since the beginning of November, according to the latest figures from NHS England.
There were 9,594 coronavirus patients in hospital in England as of 8am on Wednesday March 3, the first time it has dropped below 10,000 since November 1 when there were 9,623.
It is also a week-on-week drop of 26% from the 13,007 coronavirus patients in hospital in England on February 24 and a 72% drop from the peak of 34,336 coronavirus patients in hospital on January 18.
