Omicron is ‘a big sting in the tail’, a Manchester public health boss has warned. The caution comes as Greater Manchester Mayor Andy Burnham called on the government to continue providing free tests beyond the end of the month.
Coronavirus rates are climbing across all 10 boroughs of Greater Manchester, with Manchester borough Director of Public Health, David Regan, saying figures are now reaching ‘very, very high levels’ for the first time since Omicron swept the country at the end of 2021 and the New Year. The uptick in case numbers is already ‘seeing real impacts on staff absence’ and ‘care home outbreaks’, added the public health chief.
Meanwhile, Greater Manchester Mayor is pleading with the government to extend supplies of free lateral flow testing kits beyond March 31. The absence of testing will leave health leaders ‘without data’ to accurately judge the scale of the coronavirus wave ‘we are now in’.
