Wales has recorded a further 27 Covid deaths according to latest figures from Public Health Wales. New data published on Monday, March 28, and covering a 24-hour period, also show 2,206 new positive PCR test results to bring the total to 854,130.
The overall number of people who have died within 28 days of a positive Covid test in Wales now stands at 7,122. The latest infection rate based on PCR tests for the seven days up to March 21 is 443.1 cases for every 100,000 people – a rise from the 429.4 cases recorded on Friday.
The infection rate based on PCR tests is only a guide to the spread of Covid in Wales as it does not include lateral flow test results which are reported weekly in Wales. People with no symptoms who test positive on an LFT no longer need a confirmatory PCR test.
Read more: The reasons why Covid infection rates are rising again in Wales
The latest data on lateral flow tests, for the week to March 21, shows a massive increase in positive tests. There were 30,712 positive test results reported in the last seven days. That's up substantially from 21,212 the previous week and the highest weekly figure ever recorded.
The Office for National Statistics infection survey, published on Friday, March 25, also shows cases are increasing rapidly. It estimates that 192,000 people in Wales - or around 1 in 16 - had Covid the week ending March 19. That is the same as in England while Scotland has the highest Covid rate with one in 11 people currently infected. One in 17 people in Northern Ireland are estimated to have it.
In the seven days to March 21 a total of 38.6% of PCR tests across Wales gave a positive result – a rise on the 38.1% reported on Friday. The highest positivity rates were in Blaenau Gwent (45.8%), Monmouthshire (42.2%) and Newport (41.3%).
The highest infection rate (based on PCR tests) for the seven days up to March 20 was Blaenau Gwent with 695.7 cases per 100,000 population followed by Monmouthshire with 522.3 and Vale of Glamorgan with 521.8.
Cardiff recorded the most positive cases over the latest 24-hour period with 253 followed by RCT with 218, Caerphilly with 151, Newport with 134, Vale of Glamorgan with 125, Swansea with 123, Carmarthenshire with 118, Pembrokeshire with 115 and Flintshire with 103.
Meanwhile Torfaen had 92 new cases, Monmouthshire had 79, Wrexham had 76, Bridgend had 71, Denbighshire had 67, Powys and Blaenau Gwent both had 66, Gwynedd had 60, Anglesey with 57 and Neath Port Talbot had 52.
The local authorities with the lowest numbers of new cases included Conwy with 44, Merthyr Tydfil with 41, and Ceredigion with 22.
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As of March 25 there were 12 patients in ventilated intensive care beds with confirmed Covid-19, down from 14 on March 24. Eight of them were based in Cardiff and Vale University Health Board (UHB), three were in Betsi Cadwaladr UHB, and one was in Aneurin Bevan UHB. The fall in ICU numbers seen at the start of the year has stopped and fluctuated at around the same level for the last month.
Figures are also being published showing the number of people in hospital being specifically treated for Covid rather than testing positive for the virus but being in hospital for other reasons. They show that as of March 25 there were 790 patients in acute hospitals with confirmed Covid of whom 111 were being treated for the condition.
A total of 2,528,051 people have received one dose of the coronavirus vaccine and 2,398,676 have been given two doses. Meanwhile 1,925,251 people have been given their booster jabs in Wales.
Infection rate for every 100,000 people in each area for the seven days up to March 21:
Aneurin Bevan University Health Board
Blaenau Gwent: 695.7 (up from 668.5)
Newport: 486.8 (up from 468.7)
Caerphilly: 444.6 (up from 440.1)
Torfaen: 497 (up from 481.1)
Monmouthshire: 522.3 (up from 472.6)
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Conwy: 379.7 (up from 352.4)
Anglesey: 389.8 (up from 364.1)
Gwynedd: 455.2 (up from 433.5)
Denbighshire: 466.1 (up from 437.8)
Flintshire: 461.2 (up from 452.3)
Wrexham: 465.6 (up from 462.6)
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board
Cardiff: 451.3 (down from 452.2)
Vale of Glamorgan: 521.8 (up from 509.8)
Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board
Merthyr Tydfil: 384.6 (up from 346.5)
Rhondda Cynon Taf: 475 (up from 451.8)
Bridgend: 350.9 (down from 351.6)
Hywel Dda University Health Board
Carmarthenshire: 454 (up from 434.9)
Pembrokeshire: 475.3 (up from 455.4)
Ceredigion: 433.3 (up from 423.7)
Powys Teaching Health Board
Powys: 380.6 (up from 372.3)
Swansea Bay University Health Board
Neath Port Talbot: 328.6 (up from 323.8)
Swansea: 325.9 (up from 323.1)
Wales total: 443.1 (up from 429.4 )
From Monday, March 28 people will no longer have to wear masks in shops or on public transport in Wales - but they will still be needed in hospitals and health care settings. The Welsh Government has decided not to relax all restrictions - as it had hoped to do - as cases continue to rise in Wales.
The legal requirement to self-isolate is being scrapped and instead people will be asked to stay inside if they test positive but it is no longer going to be the law. Businesses will still be asked to complete risk assessments. First Minister Mark Drakeford said: "We have seen an unwelcome rise in coronavirus cases across Wales, mirroring the position in most of the UK. We have carefully considered the very latest scientific and medical evidence and we need to keep some legal protections in place for a little while longer to help keep Wales safe.
"Throughout the pandemic we have taken a gradual and cautious approach as we have relaxed protections. We are firmly on the path towards leaving the emergency response to the pandemic behind us and learning to live with coronavirus safely."
