Excess deaths in UK hit highest level in two years amid NHS crisis

Excess deaths in the week before Christmas were the highest in two years amid a crisis in NHS care, new figures show.

Approximately 2,500 more people died than usual in the week ending 23 December in England and Wales, numbers from the Office for National Statistics reveal.

The total death toll of 14,530 is 21% higher than would be expected for this period, compared with averages from the last five years.

The new figures represent the highest excess and overall deaths recorded since February 2021. At that time, the UK recorded 15,943 deaths from Covid as transmission rates remained high. But only 429 of the most recent deaths have been linked to the virus.

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Source: The Independent, 5 January 2023