The number of people taking up hospitals beds with coronavirus has dropped to levels not seen since last October.
Latest Welsh Government figures show that on March 30 a total of 635 beds were occupied with confirmed, suspected, and recovering Covid-19 patients, representing just 8% of all hospitalisations.
That is a significant drop on 729 on the same day the previous week and way below the peak on January 12 of 2,879 patients.
When it came to "confirmed" coronavirus patients – leaving out those who are suspected and recovering cases – there were just 128 beds occupied on March 30, which is the lowest daily figure since September 24 last year.
Meanwhile on March 30 there were 15 invasive ventilated beds occupied with coronavirus patients which was down from 25 on the same day the previous week. The highest number of patients in these types of beds was in April 2020 when there were 164.
According to latest figures an average of 21 people a day have been admitted into Welsh hospitals with coronavirus in the last week – a number which has more than halved in just seven days (48 for the week to March 23).
In fact the latest weekly average is the lowest number of admissions recorded since the data was first compiled in April 2020.
As a result of these encouraging statistics the Welsh Government has decided to relax more of the lockdown restrictions including reopening non-essential retail, close contact services, and allowing all students back to face-to-face learning on April 12.
Outdoor hospitality, including cafes, pubs and restaurants, is also set to open again on April 26.
"All of this has been possible because of your hard work and sacrifices over the winter months," said First Minister Mark Drakeford on Thursday.
"Your efforts have helped to bring coronavirus under control in our communities and reduce the pressure on our hospitals."
The latest scientific advice from the Technical Advisory Cell (TAC), which gives guidance to the Welsh Government on policy decisions, found that cases in those aged 60-plus appear to be shrinking at a rate of 2.8% per day.
Those in the higher age groups are far more likely to need hospital admissions and the most intensive form of treatment.
"There is evidence that vaccination rollout is beginning to reduce the correlation between hospitalisations/deaths and case rates," the TAC report states.
The Welsh Government data also showed that there were 1,936 attendances to Wales' accident and emergency departments on March 28. This compares to 2,187 on the same day in the previous week and still way under the 2015-19 average of 2,777.
From mid-January A&E attendances have started to increase again from 1,406 on January 10 to 2,720 attendances on March 22 – the highest number of attendances in a day so far in 2021.
