Greater Manchester's new Covid hotspots revealed as figures show how many in hospital have virus

Around one in 14 hospital beds in Greater Manchester are currently occupied by patients with Covid, the latest figures have revealed.

As of Tuesday (March 7), 354 of the region's approximately 5,000 hospital beds were occupied by patients with the virus. There are also 33 people in 'general and acute' hospital beds and three in 'critical care' beds with flu.

In total, about 98pc of Greater Manchester's hospital beds are currently occupied.

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Earlier this week, it was announced that people aged 75 and over, those in care homes and anyone aged five and over who is immunosuppressed would be offered a spring Covid-19 booster jab.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said it has advised that certain groups of people should be offered the vaccinations, with options including the Pfizer, Moderna, Sanofi/GSK jabs.

People will be offered the vaccine around six months after their previous dose, with the booster campaign in England running from April 17 to June 30.

The Novavax jab will also be available for use only when alternatives are not considered clinically suitable.

Children under 12 will be offered a children’s formulation of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine. Which vaccine people get will depend on local supply.

Professor Wei Shen Lim, chairman of the JCVI’s Covid-19 committee, said: “Vaccination remains the best way to protect yourself against Covid-19 and the spring booster programme provides an opportunity for those who are at highest risk of severe illness to keep their immunity topped up.

“This year’s spring programme will bridge the gap to the planned booster programme in the autumn, enabling those who