2,174 new infections were registered within 24 hours. That is below the average of the past seven days with 2,292 cases per day. It could be “calm before the storm” because experts have as reported the next wave is forecast for January due to the Omikron variant.
Incidence decreased
The seven-day incidence is currently 179.6. This number also fell sharply, on Wednesday it was 189.7 cases per 100,000 inhabitants within 24 hours. There was also a decrease in the number of active cases. 33,470 people in Austria are currently suffering from a SARS-CoV-2 infection, 2,669 fewer than the day before.
Western Austria with the highest incidence
The federal state with the highest seven-day incidence is currently Vorarlberg with 322.1, followed by Tyrol with 280.9, Carinthia with 193.7 and Upper Austria with 167.4. In Lower Austria the incidence was 164.6, in Vienna 163.6, in Styria 160.9, in Salzburg 135.7 and in Burgenland 114.2. In the total numbers, Vienna is currently in first place with 382 new infections, followed by Lower Austria with 368 cases. In Upper Austria, 314 people were infected with SARS-CoV-2 within one day, in Styria 301, in Tyrol 283, in Carinthia and Vorarlberg 156 each, in Salzburg 137 and in Burgenland 50 people.
Because of the upcoming Christmas festivities, more people will probably get tested in order to avoid infections within the families. You noticed this on the day before Christmas Eve, when almost a million – exactly 993,718 – PCR and antigen rapid tests were registered within 24 hours. Around two thirds, namely 658,719, were meaningful PCR tests. Currently 0.3 percent of PCR tests are positive, compared with an average of 0.6 percent last week. More than 152 million tests have been carried out in Austria since the pandemic broke out.
Omikron is already gaining ground
The figures from the Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES) show that the Omikron variant is slowly taking over the infection process. In calendar week 47 there were six Omikron cases and 12,165 Delta cases in Austria. In calendar week 50 there were already 522 omicron cases, the delta cases fell to just 5,369. The variants alpha, beta and gamma hardly played a role in Austria. In week 50 there was only one infection that can be traced back to the alpha variant. The Omikron cases in Vienna are quite high. Of the total of 419 cases of the Omikron variant that emerged in Austria, 272 came from Vienna. That depends on the “Everything gurgles!” System used in the federal capital. together, which pre-tests for variants in the event of a positive result.
Still many dead
The number of deaths is still high. 28 people died with a corona infection from Wednesday to Thursday. The day before it was 29, which unfortunately is still in the seven-day average of 29.9. Within a week, 209 people died of or with Covid-19. Since its outbreak, the pandemic has claimed 13,595 corona deaths in Austria.
The number of corona patients in the hospital decreased slightly. There are currently 1,454 people – 133 fewer than the day before – in the normal ward. 430 people need intensive care. That is 29 patients less within a day and 104 less within a week.
More than 70 percent vaccinated
70.1 percent of Austrians now have valid vaccination protection. That is 6,265,484 people, 73,244 vaccinations were carried out on Wednesday. 65.52 percent or 47,993 were third stitches. This means that 39.1 percent of people in Austria received the third dose. 18,039 of yesterday’s immunizations were second stitches and 7,212 first stitches, that is 9.85 percent.
Upper Austria continues to have the worst vaccination rate
The protection rate (valid vaccination certificate) is highest in Burgenland at 75.5 percent. In Lower Austria, 71.9 percent of the population have valid vaccination protection, in Styria 70 percent. After Vienna (69.3), Tyrol (69.1), Vorarlberg (67.3), Salzburg (66.8) and Carinthia (66.8), Upper Austria brings up the rear with 65.9 percent.
There have already been 1,258,377 confirmed corona cases in Austria since the start of the pandemic. 1,211,312 people have recovered from an infection.
Source: Nachrichten
