A total of 4,261 new infections were recorded from the previous 24 hours, well above the average of the previous seven days, which was 3,584 per day.

The last time that daily cases topped 4,000 was in November 2020, when there were 4,047 new cases.

Wednesdays typically have slightly higher case numbers than average because of the way that Austria’s reporting system works. Weekly tests in many schools and workplaces are taken on Monday, with the results processed on Tuesdays and showing up in Wednesday’s figures. 

However, Wednesday’s high figure appears to be part of an ongoing upward trend.

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The seven-day incidence rate (new cases reported per 100,000 residents) reached 281 nationwide, up from 248 one week ago. The last time the incidence rate was above 280 was in early December 2020.

Meanwhile, the number of people being treated for the virus in hospital has also risen, reaching 1,257 which is more than a 30 percent week-on-week rise.

One of Austria’s major struggles is vaccine hesitancy. Compared to its western European neighbours, vaccination uptake has been low, with only 62.3 percent of the population fully vaccinated against Covid-19. Upper Austria, the state with the lowest rate of vaccination, also has the highest incidence rate.

Austrian national and state authorities have repeatedly stated that vaccination is the only way out of the crisis, and last week announced plans to bring in a lockdown only for unvaccinated people if cases rise to the point that the healthcare sector is under pressure.

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