UK COVID Cases Rise for Second Day in a Row Amid Test Drop

The daily number of COVID cases reported in the UK has increased for the second day in a row, although experts have cautioned against drawing hasty conclusions from the fluxes.

31,117 cases were reported in the UK on Thursday, up from 27,734 the day before, marking the first increase in cases since July 20.

While the recent drop in cases has been the subject of much discussion, according to Dr. Claire Bayntun, RSM Vice President and Clinical Consultant in Global Public Health, there has also been a recent drop in testing.

Speaking at a webinar hosted by the company, she said: “I just came from a meeting with colleagues at PHE [Public Health England] and they were just confirming that there was a 20% reduction in testing over this very recent period,” she said, although it was not clear if this was just for the UK or England.

The reduction in doorbell tests with data from the government coronavirus dashboard reveals that the total number of tests conducted in the UK decreased by just over 14% from July 22 to July 28, compared to the preceding seven days (July 15-21).