The number of people infected with the coronavirus in England fell by two-thirds between mid-January and mid-February, according to a new report from the REACT study carried out by Imperial College London and Ipsos MORI.
Preliminary results of the study, which was completed by more than 85,400 volunteers in England, show that 0.51 per cent of people (or 1 in 196) tested positive between February 4 and 13. The study showed previously, conducted between January 6 and January 22, a frequency of 1.57 percent (or 1 in 63).
As the decline in infections is similar across all age groups, it is likely that locking restrictions rather than vaccines are responsible for the decline, the government said.
The figures show that “England’s lockout measures are effectively bringing down diseases,” Professor Paul Elliott, program director at Imperial, said in a government statement.
The number of diseases fell in all parts of England. But “large house size, living in a poor neighborhood, and areas with higher numbers of people of Asian descent were associated with greater frequency,” according to the statement. Health care workers and care homes were also more likely to test positive.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to announce his discount plans on 22 February.