Virus transmission rate continues to rise as R-number nears 1

16 March 2022, 10:08 am

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A health worker takes a sample at a testing center in Jerusalem, on January 09, 2022. (Olivier Fitoussi/Flash90)

The rate of COVID transmission continues its slow but steady rise, according to new Health Ministry figures.

The R-number — the reproduction rate of the novel coronavirus — hits 0.9, the Health Ministry says, based on data from 10 days earlier.

That figure represents the number of people each confirmed patient infects, on average. Any number over one signifies that the pandemic is growing.

There were 6,310 new COVID cases detected on Tuesday and as of Wednesday morning, 335 people are hospitalized in serious condition.

Earlier, the Health Ministry said two people have been found to be carrying a coronavirus strain that combined the original Omicron and the so-called “stealth” BA.2 variant.

“This strain has not yet been seen in the world,” the ministry said, noting that the cases were found “in recent days” in testing of international arriving travelers at Ben Gurion Airport. The ministry said the two cases are suffering mild symptoms and have not required special medical care.