DEATHS from coronavirus in Scotland have been slowing down for the last month, according to official data released on the eve of the lockdown easing.
The latest figures from the National Record of Scotland found Covid-19 had been implicated in 3,779 deaths up to May 24.
However numbers have now been falling for four consecutive weeks.
Total Covid deaths fell last week from 335 to 230, a drop of 31 per cent, and well below the weekly peak of 659 in mid-April.
Deaths in care homes fell from 186 to 124, a fall of 33% and deaths in hospitals fell from 128 to 95, a fall of 26%.
The figures showed Covid deaths in care homes since the start of outbreak now almost match those in hospitals.
Overall, 1,749 of the 3,779 deaths or 46.3% were in care homes, compared to 1,760 or 46.6% in hospitals.
The NRS also reported there had been almost twice as many deaths as normal - from all causes - in care homes over the course of the outbreak.
It said that between March 16 and May 24 there had been 2,355 excess deaths in care, with fatalities running at 94% above average.
These excess deaths peaked in the week ending April 26, and have fallen since, but remain higher than average for this time of year.
In the same period, there were just 438 excess deaths, or 8% above average in hospitals.
Total excess deaths in homes and non-institutional settings are 1,897, or 65% above average.
The total number of deaths in Scotland where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate was up 6.5%% from last week’s total of 3,549.
#NRSStats show as of 24 May a total of 3,779 deaths have been registered in #Scotland where COVID-19 was mentioned on the death certificate. https://t.co/Ku0qgjLAn2 pic.twitter.com/Lz1l89f35X
— NatRecordsScot (@NatRecordsScot) May 27, 2020
At First Minister’s Questions, Nicola Sturgeon said the sustained trends “definitely give us grounds for encouragement”.
She said a formal decision on easing the lockdown restrictions - initially for outdoor activities - would be taken tomorrow, with the measures potentially changing on Friday.
She also announced the overnight coronavirus figures, telling MSPs that there had been another 13 deaths in 24 hours, taking the number of laboratory confirmed fatalities to 2,304.
The larger NRS tally includes cases where suspected Covid-19 was recorded as a factor on the death certificate.
It is considered more accurate than the daily running total produced by Health Protection Scotland (HPS).
The NRS cumulative figure was 36.3% higher than the 2,273 deaths recorded by HPS as of May 24.
In the past seven days, 54% of all deaths from all causes occurred in care homes, compared to 55% the previous week.
Three quarters of registered deaths involving COVID-19 to date were people aged 75 or over.
Total deaths from all causes in Scotland in the week to May 24 was 1,223, a decrease of 198 on the previous week.
This was 17% more than the average number of deaths registered in the same week over the last five years, 1045.
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