Hancock pledges more support for care homes

TESTING AND TECHNOLOGY TO HELP THE SECTOR ON COVID BATTLE

HEALTH Secretary Matt Hancock has announced a package of measures to deal with the shocking high level of deaths in care homes.

Latest figures show 12,526 care home residents died from the Covid19 coronavirus between March 2 and May 1.

And the Government has been accused of neglecting care homes while it focused on protecting the NHS.

Speaking at the daily Downing Street press conference yesterday, Mr Hancock insisted care home deaths are falling, but he added: “There is now much more to do.”

He insisted: “Right from the start we tried to put a protective ring around our care homes.”

He said:

■ Every resident and every member of staff in care homes housing elderly people will be tested for coronavirus by early June, even if they don’t have symptoms

■ The NHS would provide a named medical adviser for every home

■ Care homes would be provided with technology allowing video consultations with GPs

■ Local councils will be told to carry out regular reviews of the situation in local care homes.

■ In the future, the NHS and care homes would work more closely together.

Mr Hancock said: “We have passed through the peak but there is still a long road ahead”.

The Department of Health said figures showed 33,998 people had died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Thursday, up by 384 the day before.

The Government also surpassed its daily target for 100,000 Covid-19 tests for the second day in a row.

In the 24-hour period up to 9am on Friday, 133,784 tests were carried out or dispatched for 69,590 people.

The latest estimate is that the range for the reproduction rate of coronavirus - the R value - is between 0.7 and 1.0 across the UK, scientists advising the Government have said. This is a change from 0.5 to 0.9 last week.

The Government has previously said the lockdown cannot be loosened until the R rate is below 1.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said the range reflects the situation three weeks ago, adding the number of cases in care homes and hospitals may account for the figure.

R measures how many people on average an infected person transmits Covid-19 to.

The Government has been attempting to convince teachers and parents it is safe for more children to return to school in June.

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson has said getting children back to school is “vital” for their educational development and he has welcomed the efforts by many schools in England to prepare for a wider reopening. Following a meeting between education unions and the Government’s scientific advisers yesterday afternoon, Mr Williamson said: “I want to reassure parents and families that we are giving schools, nurseries and other providers all the guidance and support they will need to welcome more children back in a phased way and no earlier than June 1.

“That’s why we have engaged closely with stakeholders from across the sector throughout the past seven weeks, including the trade unions, and we arranged a detailed briefing for them with the scientific and medical experts. “Getting children back to school is vital for their educational development and many schools are already taking steps to welcome back their pupils. I am grateful for their support.” The Government is also to launch a campaign to reduce obesity, after it emerged there was a clear link between being obese and failing to recover from coronavirus.

It follows reports in The Times that Boris Johnson is preparing a “more interventionist” drive to tackle obesity, and is convinced he ended up in intensive care with coronavirus because of his own weight.

Downing Street said the Government would invest in “preventative and personalised solutions” to help people live more active lives.

The Prime Minister’s official spokesman told a Westminster briefing: “It is critical to understand how different factors such as ethnicity, deprivation, age, gender and obesity could be disproportionately impacting how people are affected by coronavirus. “Public Health England launched a review into the factors affecting health outcomes from Covid-19. This will be published by the end of May.”

Health secretary Matt Hancock