Health and social care secretary Matt Hancock announced on Wednesday that the Office for National Statistics would begin including data from anyone who has died and tested positive for COVID-19 in its official death count from yesterday, supported by the Care Quality Commission.
The change in reporting meant that the UK’s COVID-19 death rate jumped by 3,811 to more than 26,000 overnight.
165 deaths recorded on Wednesday were in aged care homes.
The UK Government has faced heavy criticism for only including deaths in hospitals in its daily tally.
Speaking at Downing Street briefing, Mr Hancock said that it had not previously been possible to publish the data.
“This will supplement the ONS and CQC weekly publication, and all add to our understanding of how the virus is spreading day by day and it will help inform the judgments we make as we work to keep people safe,” he stated.
However, there is concern that the number of deaths in aged care is still being under-reported, because only confirmed cases where residents have tested positive for coronavirus are being included in the tally.
Deaths in UK aged care homes have almost tripled from 2,471 at the start of the pandemic to 7,316.
Disturbingly, aged care deaths unrelated to the virus have also more than doubled during the pandemic, according to the ONS.
