In a new report from the Health and Care section of ICAT the authors review common definitions, statistics and ratios used in the discussion about the COVID-19 pandemic. Whilst the report does not purport to contain original material, it provides a helpful summary of the key measures and metrics.  It is intended to increase the awareness of readers, not only about the definitions of measures used, but also about the limitations around the available data. Furthermore the report highlights the need for users to be cautious when using different information and statistics to form a view of the extent of the reach of the virus among the masses.