UK COVID-19 deaths by Omicron variant and vaccination status statistics

FOI Ref: FOI/2022/3676

You asked

Please supply the following information:

How many people in the UK have died FROM Omicron since December 1st 2020. How many of the entire UK population have yet to receive their first dose of a Covid 19 vaccine. How many people in the UK have died within 28 days of being injected with a Covid 19 vaccine

We said

Thank you for your enquiry.

We are responsible for the provision of mortality statistics for England and Wales. National Records Scotland (NRS) and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) are responsible for statistics pertaining to Scotland and Northern Ireland. Therefore, we do not hold the requested data for the whole of the UK. Should you wish to obtain this data from NRS and NISRA, they can be contacted at foi@nrscotland.gov.uk and info@nisra.gov.uk respectively.

1. COVID-19 deaths involving the Omicron variant

ONS mortality data is taken from information collated at the point of death registration. The ICD-10 code for COVID-19 deaths is U07.1 for COVID-19 and U07.2 for suspected COVID-19. There is no difference in the ICD-10 code used to differentiate between specific COVID-19 variants. Therefore, for us to obtain this information requires complex data linkage of ONS mortality data to NHS Test and Trace, which we have not yet conducted. Consequently, this information is not held.

We are currently investigating data linkage to produce a study looking at COVID-19 deaths in both the Omicron and Delta variants. At this moment we only hold a subsample and are currently working on comparing the risk of mortality between omicron and delta.   We currently do not yet have a publication date, but this will be announced on our Release Calendar in due course.

2. COVID-19 vaccination status

The Office for National Statistics COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) is a household survey that estimates the number of people testing positive for infection and for antibodies in the UK. Our statistics refer to the number of current COVID-19 infections within the population living in private residential households. We exclude those in hospitals, care homes and/or other communal establishments. In communal establishments, rates of COVID-19 infection are likely to be different.

In our Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey, antibody and vaccination bulletins we have produced modelled vaccination estimates to provide context alongside our antibodies estimates. These estimates are based on the percentages of participants vaccinated in our study and do not replace the official government figures from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA, previously Public Health England) on vaccinations.

You can find official estimates of the number of people who have received a first dose, second dose, and third dose or booster vaccine on the Government coronavirus (COVID-19) dashboard . More information on official vaccination estimates can be found in COVID-19 weekly announced vaccinations reports or you can contact UKHSA via email at informationrights@ukhsa.gov.uk.  

Further information and an overview of data about the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) and other sources can be found in our Coronavirus (COVID-19) latest insights tool.

3. COVID-19 deaths by vaccination status

Our latest analysis of Deaths involving COVID-19 by vaccination status, England looks at deaths from 2 January 2021 to 31 December 2021. Our analysis uses 21 days, rather than 28 days, after vaccination as this is when the vaccination is deemed effective. Therefore, we do not hold the specific information requested, however we hope this will be useful to you.

The data are for England only, as vaccinations data for Wales is not yet available to be linked to the mortality dataset and the Public Health Data Asset covers England only.

Notes:

1.     Age-standardised mortality rates per 100,000 person-years, standardised to the 2013 European Standard Population using five-year age groups from those aged 10 years and over. "Person-years" take into account both the number of people and the amount of time spent in each vaccination status. For more information, see our methodology article.

2.     Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures based on deaths that occurred between 1 January and 31 December 2021 and were registered by 12 January 2022. These figures represent death occurrences, there can be a delay between the date a death occurred and the date a death was registered. More information can be found in our impact of registration delays release.

3.     ASMRs are calculated using the Public Health Data Asset, a linked dataset of people resident in England, who could be linked to the 2011 Census and GP Patient Register. This dataset covers approximately 79% of the population in England aged 10+.

4.     Deaths were defined using the International Classification of Diseases, tenth revision (ICD-10). Deaths involving the coronavirus (COVID-19) are defined as those with an underlying cause, or any mention of, ICD-10 codes U07.1 (COVID-19 virus identified) or U07.2 (COVID-19, virus not identified). Please note, this differs from the definition used in the majority of mortality outputs.

5.     95% confidence intervals are indicated by the shaded regions. Where the total number of deaths is less than 100, Dobson's method is used, otherwise the normal approximation is used. Non-overlapping confidence intervals denote a statistically significant difference in ASMR.

6.     Age is defined on the first day of the month.

7.     While differences in the ages of people in the vaccination status groups are accounted for, other differences, such as health, ethnicity or level of deprivation, may remain, which can affect the mortality rates.

8.     Totals may not exactly equal the sum of totals from breakdowns due to rounding.

9.     Third dose or booster vaccinations are defined as a third or booster dose received after 16 September 2021, the date from which booster doses were first administered.

Please note this publication does not include deaths attributed to an adverse reaction to the COVID-19 vaccine.

For further information please contact Health.Data@ons.gov.uk.