ERR News has rounded up the most important news and data about the coronavirus in Estonia from the last week and put it in one place.

This round-up is released every Monday, because the results for Sunday of the previous week are released on Monday morning, only making it possible to analyze the previous week's results after the data has been reported.

You can find the following graphs below:

The total number of new cases diagnosed by week;
New cases by day for January 4-10;
New cases by county by week;
New cases compared with deaths and hospital releases;
Total number of positive and negative tests by week;
Deaths by age group.

The data has been taken from the Health Board and we downloaded it from Koroonakaart which publishes data every day in English, Russian and Estonian.

Our "Coronavirus in Estonia: All You Need to Know" guide also provides an overview of total cases by county, the daily rate of new cases, and includes a breakdown of all the restrictions so far. We update this page daily.

In the graphs below, you can add or take away data from the graphs by clicking on the colored dots below. The data points are (mostly) dated with each Monday's date.

Overview

There was a lot of discussion about the COVID-19 vaccine roll-out last week and why it was not happening faster. Hospitals denied that things were happening slower than expected, saying they had not expected to get vaccines until the first week of the year so they were ahead of schedule.

Additionally, many health care workers took vacation over Christmas and were not forced to attend training sessions to learn how to use the vaccine. The first vaccines arrived in Estonia on December 27 but by January 3 only 2,535 had been administered.

The government decided school children in 13 counties could end distance learning after the school holidays and return to the classroom. Only Harju and Ida-Viru counties are continuing with distance learning due to their higher infection rates.

The government will discuss restrictions this week, but could not make any decisions last week because the true infection rate after the holidays is not yet known.

However, it was decided to make travelers show a negative COVID-19 test on arrival to Estonia, or if that is not possible, to make airport testing after arrival mandatory rather than voluntary from January 15.

The Health Board expects the high number of cases to continue in the coming weeks.

New cases by week: There were 4,289 positive tests recorded last week - a new record - and the first time more than 4,000 new cases have been recorded in a single week. There were 36 deaths.

The 14-day infection rate on Monday was 601.44 per 100,000 compared to 559.5 last Monday. There are 412 people being treated in hospital, fewer than the 442 being treated last Monday.

New cases by day January 4-10: A new record for cases was set last week when more than 1,000 were set on a single day. The Health Board said this was down to a backlog in the lab and a rise in people being tested after the holidays. Every other day recorded a lower number of new tests.

The lowest number on a single day was 290 on Sunday and the highest was 1,102 on Wednesday.

New cases by county: There were new cases reported in every county last week, you can see exactly how many and where on the map below. Pärnu County overtook Tartu County to have the third-highest number of cases. The majority of the new cases were diagnosed in Harju, Ida-Viru, Pärnu and Tartu counties.

Harju County set a new record with 2,440 cases being diagnosed last week, almost 300 more than the week before.

The number of new cases rose in Ida-Viru County after four weeks of falling cases. In total, 675 were recorded compared to 538 the week before.

Pärnu County overtook Tartu County to have the third-highest number of cases and the county set a new record reporting 247 last week. The highest number of cases previously recorded in a single week was 167, just before Christmas.

Saare County's rose from 27 to 36.

Tartu County's cases fell from 244 to 233 and Võru County's fell from 75 to 69.

The Health Board has stopped publishing data about outbreaks, so it is not possible to tell where outbreaks are taking place or in what circles.

You can add or take away data from the graph by clicking on the colored dots at the bottom. The six counties included on the graph have the highest numbers of cases in total. 

Hospital releases: 225 people were released from hospital last week. There were 412 patients being treated in hospital on Monday, fewer than the week before.

Positive and negative tests by week: The total number of tests analyzed last week was 34,519, which shows the pre-Christmas level of testing has returned. There were 4,289 positives and 30,230 negative tests.

The average positive share of tests each day was 11.97 percent.

Deaths

Deaths by week: 36 people died after being diagnosed with COVID-19, which is the second-highest number of deaths in a single week.

 Coronavirus highlights January 4-10:

• Contact learning can restart in 13 counties from January 11 
• Coronavirus map: Estonia's covid rate almost 10 times higher than Finland
• Negative COVID-19 test must be shown on arrival to Estonia from January 15
• Health Board: High number of daily new cases could stay for weeks
• Close to 200 EDF conscripts in quarantine after Christmas leave
• Socio-economic reasons behind Lasnamäe, Ida-Viru's higher COVID-19 rate
• COVID-19 vaccine administration hindered by holidays and staff training
• Ministry does not know Moderna COVID-19 vaccine delivery schedule
• HOIA COVID-19 exposure notification app hits 250,000 users
• Opinion: Pandemic highlighted shortcomings in Estonian e-Government

"Let's keep Estonia open!"

The Health Board launched a new campaign called "Let's keep Estonia open!" ("Hoiame Eesti elu avatud!") this week, which calls for the people of Estonia to follow five basic principles:

• Stay at home if you have fallen ill;
• Stay at least two meters away from other people;
• Wear a mask in crowded places;
• Wash your hands diligently;
• Download the HOIA app onto your smartphone;
• Get your information from reliable sources, such as kriis.ee, the Health Board or contact the free 1247 helpline.

The spread of coronavirus in Estonia is extensive and rapid, which means that it is possible to get infected anywhere you may come in to contact with others.

If possible, choose electronic channels and online services for running your errands. Run as many of your errands as possible via electronic channels which will allow you to avoid unnecessary contact with others and reduce the risk of your being infected.

If you experience any symptoms, please stay at home.

Download HOIA

Estonia's coronavirus exposure notification app HOIA will alert you if you have been in close contact with someone who later tests positive for coronavirus.

The free app can be downloaded at the Google Play Store or App Store. Read ERR News' feature about the app here. 

Note to readers

Feedback is welcome, as are suggestions for data we can show or stories we can tell. Email: [email protected]

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