A study released today by the ONS suggests that almost 3 million people in England would have Covid antibodies if everyone was tested. This represents 1 in 17 people in England.
According to the latest study by the ONS, almost 3 million people living in England have already developed antibodies to Covid.
ONS Study Shows 3 Million in England with Covid Antibodies
These latest findings estimate that 1 in 17 people in England have Covid antibodies. This number is based on the presumption that if the entire nation were to all be tested at once, the results would mirror exactly the results found in small sample groups.
Yesterday, the ONS stated that antibody tests may not accurately represent the number of people who have actually had the virus. This statement was affirmed by scientists from the British Medical Journal who declared that surveys might not represent all of those who have developed an immune response to Covid. On Friday, the ONS said that, out of those who have had blood tests, 6 per cent of adults (aged 16 and above) in England displayed Covid immunity. Projected onto the entire population, that figure represents 2.7 million adults in England.
With lockdowns in specific cities in the north of England in place, regional differences will have a part to play in the reliability of this study. London, which was the epicentre of the virus at the start of the pandemic, has the highest figures with a predicted11 per cent that have Covid antibodies. The region with the lowest percentage is the south-west with 3.5 per cent.
These figures will be further analysed over the coming weeks and months and no doubt change given the fact that this sample is based on a small percentage of the general population and on a testing system which does not measure a full immune response to Covid.
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