Consequences of lockdown may be responsible for more deaths than COVID-19

The effects of lockdown may be responsible for more deaths than COVID-19, as nearly 10,000 more deaths are reported than the five-year average, according to the UK's National Statistics Service, the Daily Mail reports. 

About 1,000 more people than usual die each week from diseases and conditions unrelated to COVID-19, according to the agency.

That makes the excess death rate 14.4 percent higher than the five-year average, which means that 1,350 more people died than usual in the week of early August. 

Of these, 469 deaths were coronavirus-related and 881 deaths were "due to unexplained causes." Since the beginning of June, there have been nearly 10,000 more non-coronavirus-related deaths than the five-year average of about 1,089 per week.

That figure is more than three times the number of people who have died from COVID-19 - 2,811 in the same period.

The Telegraph newspaper reported that the Department of Health may have ordered an investigation into these numbers because they may be related to delays in medical care as a result of the continuing strain on the health care system. 

Just last week, statistics across England showed that emergency standards in hospitals had reached historic lows, with more than 20,000 patients waiting more than 12 hours for care. 

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