Two more people have died with coronavirus in Wales, according to latest figures from Public Health Wales.
New data published on Tuesday, March 15, and covering a 72-hour period, shows 4,114 new positive PCR test results to bring the total to 831,632.
The total number of people who have died within 28 days of a positive Covid test in Wales now stands at 7,050.
Read more: The situation with 'Deltacron' in Wales and how much of a concern it is
The latest infection rate based on PCR tests for the seven days up to March 10 is 263.3 cases for every 100,000 people – a rise from the 217.7 cases recorded on Monday. This has been rising steadily for the last week.
The infection rate based on PCR tests is only a guide to the spread of Covid in Wales as it does not include lateral flow test results which are reported weekly in Wales. People with no symptoms who test positive on an LFT no longer need a confirmatory PCR test.
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The area of Wales with the highest infection rate for the seven days up to March 10 was Blaenau Gwent with 387.9 cases per 100,000 population followed by Vale of Glamorgan with 351.1 and Gwynedd with 307.5.
Cardiff recorded the most positive cases over the latest 72-hour period with 485, followed by RCT with 362, Carmarthenshire with 232, Swansea with 221, Flintshire with 218, Vale of Glamorgan with 210, Caerphilly with 203 and Gwynedd with 201.
Meanwhile, Wrexham had 198 new cases, Newport had 187, Powys had 179, Pembrokeshire had 171, Denbighshire had 133, Conwy had 130, Bridgend had 126, Torfaen had 125, Blaenau Gwent had 121, Ceredigion and Neath Port Talbot both had 113 and Monmouthshire had 109.
The areas with the lowest new cases reported were Anglesey with 84 and Merthyr Tydfil with 52.
In the seven days to March 10 a total of 29.8% of PCR tests across Wales gave a positive result, a rise on the 26.1% reported on Monday. The highest positivity rates were in Vale of Glamorgan (343%), Gwynedd (34.3%), Blaenau Gwent (34.1%) and Flintshire (34.1%).
As of March 14, there were 12 patients in ventilated intensive care beds with confirmed Covid-19. Six of them were based in Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, two were in Hywel Dda UHB and one was in Betsi Cadwaladr UHB. The fall in ICU numbers seen at the start of the year has stopped and fluctuated at around the same level for the last month.
Figures being published showing the number of people being specifically treated for Covid rather than testing positive for the virus, but being in hospital for other reasons, also show that Covid rates in hospital are rising. As of March 14, there were 481 patients in acute hospitals with Covid, of whom 108 were being treated for the condition.
A total of 2,523,820 people have received one dose of the coronavirus vaccine and 2,393,793 have been given two doses. Meanwhile 1,923,745 people have been given their booster jabs in Wales.
Infection rate for every 100,000 people in each area for the seven days up to March 10:
Aneurin Bevan University Health Board
Blaenau Gwent: 387.9 (up from 322.1)
Newport: 260.5 (up from 207.5)
Caerphilly: 224.2 (up from 197.2)
Torfaen: 234.1 (up from 179.9)
Monmouthshire: 267.5 (up from 219.9)
Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board
Conwy: 202.2 (up from 176.6)
Anglesey: 191.3 (up from 135.6)
Gwynedd: 307.5 (up from 222.4)
Denbighshire: 266.5 (up from 235.1)
Flintshire: 276.7 (up from 218.4)
Wrexham: 268.5 (up from 218.5)
Cardiff and Vale University Health Board
Cardiff: 285.9 (up from 230)
Vale of Glamorgan: 351.1 (up from 307.7)
Cwm Taf Morgannwg University Health Board
Merthyr Tydfil: 185.7 (up from 149.2)
Rhondda Cynon Taf: 284.3 (up from 220.1)
Bridgend: 228.5 (up from 183.6)
Hywel Dda University Health Board
Carmarthenshire: 304.1 (up from 267)
Pembrokeshire: 279.8 (up from 235.3)
Ceredigion: 269.6 (up from 206.3)
Powys Teaching Health Board
Powys: 200.1 (up from 179.7)
Swansea Bay University Health Board
Neath Port Talbot: 234.4 (up from 207.9)
Swansea: 210.1 (up from 192.7)
Wales total: 263.3 (up from 217.7 )
The headlines from the latest ONS infection survey published on March 11 suggest the percentage of people testing positive for Covid in Wales increased during the week ending March 5.
In the last survey, it was estimated 97,900 people in Wales, equivalent to one in 30, had Covid in the week ending March 5. In England the figure was one in 25, in Scotland it was one in 19 and Northern Ireland one in 13. Every part of the UK has seen a rise in the last week.
The latest data on lateral flow tests, for the week to March 6, also show an increase in positive tests. There were 12,288 positive test results reported in the last seven days. That's up substantially from 9,255 the previous week.
The percentage of LFT tests that produced positive results increased from 8.49% to 10.88%. The highest LFT incidence rate was in the Hywel Dda University Health Board area with 467.5 positive tests for every 100,000 people - way up on the 349.5 in the previous week.
First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced that all legal Covid measures in Wales could be removed by March 28. He said Wales will remain at alert level zero for the time being but legal requirements could go following a review on March 24 if the public health situation remains stable.
If it does, it means that on March 28 it will no longer be compulsory to wear face coverings in shops, on public transport, or in healthcare settings from that date and self-isolation will not be required by law.
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