The fifth wave of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in Israel is showing signs of a rapid decline, according to data released by Israel’s Health Ministry Wednesday morning.
A total of 20,340 new coronavirus cases were diagnosed Tuesday, down from 23,678 a day earlier and 31,259 on Sunday. Late last month, Israel marked an all-time high of 85,192 new cases reported in a single day.
The percentage of tests coming back positive has also fallen dramatically, declining more than ten points from the all-time high recorded earlier in February.
Of the tests conducted Tuesday, 18.73% came back positive, down from 19.13% Monday, 24.89% Sunday, and 26.14% Saturday, after peaking earlier this month at 28.89%.
There are currently 169,437 known active cases of the virus in Israel, with 927 seriously ill patients, down from 970 on Tuesday, 1,032 on Monday, and 1,035 on Sunday. The number of seriously ill patients reached 1,255 – the highest number recorded during the pandemic.
The infection coefficient, which indicates whether the pandemic is expanding or contracting, fell to 0.68, the lowest level reported since May 2021.
Five COVID-related deaths were reported Tuesday, bringing the total number since the pandemic began to 9,651.