THE number of patients with coronavirus being treated at Herefordshire's hospitals has fallen slightly – but remains at one of the highest levels in six months.

NHS England data shows 16 people were being cared for in hospital by the Wye Valley NHS Trust on Tuesday, September 7.

There were no beds occupied by people who tested positive for Covid-19 on May 18 – the day after the second easing of lockdown in England.

The figures show the number of people being treated in hospital for Covid on September 7 was down from 19 on the same day the previous week.

There have only been 16 or more Covid patients at the Wye Valley NHS Trust on three days in the six months since February 26.

They also show that 19 new Covid patients were admitted to hospital in Herefordshire in the week to September 5 – two less than the previous seven days.

But the number of patients in mechanical ventilation beds, those used for the most seriously ill, stood at one on September 7.

That number has been between zero and two since July 20, and stood at two on August 31.

As of 4pm on September 8, two patients had died at the trust in September after testing positive for coronavirus.

Both deaths happened on September 1, taking the toll since the start of the pandemic to 238.