When NHS mask-wearing rules in England were scrapped on June 10, local health authorities were given the power to draw up their own policies. Their guidance, however, is no longer legally enforceable. Figures from NHS England show that around 10,658 patients were hospitalized with coronavirus on Monday. Infections have doubled in a fortnight across England – with around 1,000 patients admitted with the virus every day. Professor Andrew Pollard, who is also director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, which developed the AstraZeneca vaccine, said there was an “extraordinary” number of cases at the moment. “I certainly know more people now who have had Covid than at any time in the past,” he told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme. “Because there are so many in the community, anything we can do in our hospitals to reduce potential cases makes sense, and therefore mandatory mask use in hospitals is a very sensible policy,” he added. The number of deaths per day from Covid around the world is lower than it has been in the last 18 months, but figures from the Office for National Statistics show that 2.3 million people in the UK had coronavirus in the week ending on June 24, 32% increase from last week. Pollard said that while hospitalizations were down, “it doesn’t mean that Covid isn’t a bit of a problem because there are still people being admitted to hospital where Covid is a co-factor in their admission, often alongside another health condition. “This huge spread that we have right now is going to increase the number of hospital admissions as a result,” he said. Pollard’s comments come after several hospitals in England and Wales announced they were bringing back masks in a bid to curb a recent surge in cases. Trusts from Cambridgeshire, Hampshire, Nottinghamshire, Devon and Wales have all reinstated mask-wearing guidance for their hospitals. The move comes amid fears that a new outbreak could reduce NHS staffing levels once again, with knock-on effects on ambulance waiting times and the availability of specialists and operations. Cambridge University Hospitals NHS Trust said its update was to “reduce the further spread of Covid and keep patients and staff safe”. Sherwood Forest Hospitals NHS Trust, in Nottinghamshire, said it was “vital that we take decisive action to protect our most vulnerable patients”. Similar recall messages were shared by Torbay and South Devon NHS Trust and North West Anglia NHS Trust. Subscribe to First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7am. BST Experts believe the latest spike in cases is likely linked to Omicron’s BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which could push the total number of patients above April’s peak of 16,600. These variants are believed to be more virulent but as mild as the original Omicron strain. The government said it was monitoring the situation but did not yet plan to reimpose restrictions.
