THE coronavirus death toll at Herefordshire's hospitals has risen again, with another patient confirmed to have died.

The latest figures from NHS England show 130 people had died in hospital at Wye Valley NHS Trust as of 4pm on Saturday (January 16).

That was an increase of one compared the figures from the previous day, when there were 129.

The death reported on Sunday happened on January 13, with a slight lag possible in the reporting of deaths by NHS England.

It means there have been 11 deaths in the seven days to January 16, but there can be a delay in deaths being reported.

That figure was slightly down on the week before, when 14 patients died after a positive coronavirus test result.

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Across all hospitals in England, 631 more deaths were confirmed on Sunday, taking the total since the start of the pandemic to 60,921

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death.

This means some of the deaths that were first recorded in the latest period may actually have taken place days earlier.

NHS England guidance states: "Confirmation of Covid-19 diagnosis, death notification and reporting in central figures can take up to several days and the hospitals providing the data are under significant operational pressure."

Only deaths that occur in hospitals where the patient has tested positive for Covid-19 are recorded, with deaths in the community excluded, such as those in care homes.

It comes as Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said coronavirus restrictions will not disappear in one “big bang” but England could instead return to a tiered system.

He told BBC One’s The Andrew Marr Show: “The aim is by the middle of February to have 88% of those most at risk of dying of coronavirus with their first jab, and by the early spring to have 99% – so that is the milestone if you like.

“I think it is true to say that when we get to a situation in the early spring, perhaps March, if we succeed in hitting those targets – we have made good process so far – we can start to think about the phased transition out of the national lockdown.

“I think it is fair to say it won’t be a big bang, if you like, it will be done phased, possibly back through the tiered approach that we had before.”

He also said he was “not aware” of a delay to vaccine deliveries “beyond the flexibility” built into the rollout programme.