More than 400 Covid-19 patients have died in the last 24 hours in hospital, but the number of patients in intensive care has decreased slightly for the second day in a row, according to official statistics published Wednesday, November 18.
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Data from the health agency Public Health France show 427 deaths recorded in the last 24 hours, bringing the total death toll linked to the coronavirus in hospitals to 46,698 since the start of the epidemic in France.
However, the pressure is easing very slightly on the intensive care units, even if they remain under great stress: 4,775 Covid-19 patients are in intensive care, including 79 new admissions in 24 hours.
The number of Covid-19 patients in intensive care has been decreasing for two days in a row: they were 4,838 Tuesday and 4,919 Monday.
Public Health France also gives the number of people detected positive for Covid-19: 25,506 cases confirmed by RT-PCR and 2,877 cases confirmed by new antigenic tests, or 28,383 new cases of contamination.
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In addition, there were 32,811 people with Covid-19 hospitalized on Wednesday, against a record of 33,500 the day before, a level that had not been reached during the first wave in the spring.
"Today we have more hospital patients than at the peak of the first wave,"
Gabriel Attal, government spokesman
,
recalled on Wednesday.
Emmanuel Macron will speak next week to announce on which points the confinement will be relaxed.
By then, Prime Minister Jean Castex will bring together the leaders of parties and political groups on Friday, and Minister of Health Olivier Véran will take stock of the epidemic on Thursday evening.
