The death rate among people living in residential care has almost doubled over the past few weeks, compared with the average year, the national statistics agency CBS said on Thursday.

The death rate among people living in ordinary homes is up around 1.5%, the CBS said, after an analysis of death certificates since the coronavirus epidemic started.

Up to March 8, some 797 people died per week in an institution, but that had risen to 1,485 four weeks later, the CBS said. The number of deaths reported among the general population rose from 2,336 a week prior to March 8 up to 3,552 by week 14.

The increase in the institutional care death rate is across all ages, whereas in the general population, the over 65s account for the bulk of the increase.

Hidden death rate

Concerns have been mounting about the hidden coronavirus death rate and nursing homes are known to have been hard hit.

The NRC reported on Thursday there have been at least 5,300 known cases of coronavirus in nursing homes. The paper derived the figures from two electronic registers used by nursing homes to exchange information about patients.

In total, some 120,000 people in the Netherlands live in residential care.

A week ago, RIVM infectious diseases chief Jaap van Dissel told MPs that coronavirus cases have been identified in at least 900 of the Netherlands’ 2,500 nursing homes.

Visits to nursing homes have been banned since March 19 in an effort to contain the spread of the disease.