Coronavirus Deaths In UK Increase 761 In 24 Hours To 12,868

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The number of people who have died in UK hospitals after contracting coronavirus has risen by 761 in 24 hours.

It brings the working total to 12,868 – an increase of 6% on yesterday’s total of 12,107.

The four devolved authorities in the UK had earlier on Wednesday reported increases of 651 in England, 84 in Scotland, six in Northern Ireland and 60 in Wales.

But the government tally is 40 shy of those four numbers, which total 12,908. Here’s a quick primer on why the figures don’t add up, and how to understand them.

In England, the people who died were aged 20 to 101. Among them were 20 people with no known underlying health conditions, including a 20-year-old.

Meanwhile, as of 9am on Wednesday, 98,476 people had tested positive in the UK: an increase of 4,605 since yesterday.

In total, 15,994 tests were carried out in England, Wales and Scotland, on 11,170 people. In Northern Ireland, 577 people were tested, but the number of tests carried out is not known.

Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story, published before the Department for Health and Social Care released its figures, included the higher figure of 801 deaths in 24 hours in its headline. As explained above, this figure was reached by adding the four devolved authorities’ daily increases to yesterday’s UK total.