A person in their 80s, with underlying health conditions, has died in Jersey after contracting coronavirus.

That patient, who was in the care of Health and Social Services for 'some time' on an end-of-life pathway and receiving palliative care, died after a long illness today (25 March).

They contracted Covid-19 while being treated for their illness.

The Health Minister made the announcement late on Wednesday night:

"All efforts are being made to contact their next of kin and I would like to offer my condolences at this sad time. 

"We will not be releasing any further details about this patient, to protect their confidentiality.

"During the last week there has been a significant amount of misinformation circulating about our response to Coronavirus. You may have heard it said that we are deliberately keeping important health information from Islanders. This has never been the case.

"We have always been clear and transparent, since this pandemic began, that we would publish the numbers of people who have been tested for Covid-19, the number of people who have contracted the virus and any other relevant information. And we will publish that information as soon as we have had it confirmed.

"I would respectfully ask, at this difficult time, that people avoid speculating on social media channels. It is important that we disseminate only accurate information, as tragically – in future – we will have to report on more deaths." - Deputy Richard Renouf, Health Minister.

This person is the first in Jersey to die after being diagnosed with Covid-19.