Poland expects highest infection rate so far in new wave
Poland’s health officials say that the country has entered a new, fifth wave, in the coronavirus pandemic, predicting that it it will peak in mid-February at about 60,000 new infections per day or even more
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Poland's health officials say that the country has entered a new, fifth wave, in the coronavirus pandemic, predicting that it it will peak in mid-February at about 60,000 new infections per day or even more.
Waldemar Kraska, the deputy health minister, said Tuesday that the highly transmissible omicron variant now accounts for 19% of the samples nationwide that have been sequenced, though 50% are in the Pomerania province along the Baltic coast in the country's north.
If the Health Ministry's predictions prove correct, the rate of infection in the coming wave would be more than double that of the third wave of the COVID-19 pandemic in the spring of 2021.
On Tuesday, Poland recorded 19,652 new cases of COVID-19 and 377 deaths.
Poland's vaccination rate is at 56.5%, significantly lower than in many other European Union nations, and the death rate is significantly higher in proportion to the population.
Kraska said that 300 of the 377 deaths were among unvaccinated people.
“These are deaths that we could have avoided if these people had been vaccinated,” he said.
Health Minister Adam Niedzielski said there were other forecasts which predict new infections reaching 120,000 new daily cases or even higher.
“We have to say that the fifth wave is becoming a fact and we can expect increases in the near future,” Niedzielski said on Monday.
He said that the health care system is exposed to “the risk of a very high burden,” one that Poland has not yet faced during any of the infection surges to date.
The death rate in the central European nation of 38 million has now reached 102,686.