swill453 wrote:Bouleversee wrote:Yes, I noticed that as well. I expect it's because in some cases they don't know why because they haven't the capacity to do tests before or post mortems after.
It's not really that, because it's always been the case, nothing's changed.
You get knocked down by a bus within 28 days of a first positive Covid test in England - you're in the numbers.
You get reinfected with Covid for a second or subsequent time in England and die of Covid - you're not in the numbers.
Scott.
The somethings that have changed are the facts that Omicron is less fatal, and more testing positive for it, but dying of that something else (your bus). In addition vaccinations (and treatments) are producing better outcomes where infections, which show up in tests, aren't leading to the same rate of fatalities, but doesn't provide protection against those "buses". Offsetting that though are the number of people getting Covid for the second (or third or fourth ...) time and dying of it, but not captured by the "28 days ... first positive test".
It could be the former two are a larger distortion than the third, but it's surely the case it isn't right to believe "nothing's changed". I would say for certain the numbers are "noisier" and less accurate. The BBC caveat isn't a clear way of saying that, but is perhaps understood by its audience to reflect that, despite its poor scientific accuracy.