Hopes of end to shielding for the high-risk in July

HOPES were raised that 2.2 million high-risk people could be reunited with loved ones soon after it was claimed the shielding scheme will end next month.

The Health Service Journal reported that the measures protecting our most vulnerable will wrap up at the end of July.

It also claimed food packages and medicine deliveries for them will also stop, while the shielding list will be maintained in case people are required to isolate again in the event of a second wave of Covid-19.

The HSJ said the decision to end shielding had been made because levels of the disease in the community are now sufficiently low.

But the Government insisted a decision on when to wrap up the scheme has yet to be made.

A spokesman said: “We’ve always said we will be looking at making life easier for those having to shield, when it is safe to do so. We are considering the next steps beyond the end of June, based on the latest medical and scientific advice.

“No final decision has been made yet and we will set out more detail shortly.”

It came as dexamethasone was confirmed as the first drug shown to slash deaths from the disease.

Health Secretary Matt

Hancock hailed the discovery by

Dexamethasone a University of Oxford team as “a huge step forward”. The antiinflammatory steroid, costing £6 per dose, will now be standard treatment for patients on oxygen.

It cut deaths by 35% in ventilated hospital patients and by 20% in non-ventilated patients on oxygen. It is thought it could have saved up to 5,000 lives if in use throughout the pandemic and 200,000 courses have now been stockpiled.

But there was anger as a review concluded racism helped raise the risk of ethnic minorities dying of Covid-19. Public Health England’s report said: “Unequal impact on BAME communities may be explained by factors ranging from social and economic inequalities, racism, discrimination and stigma, occupational risk, inequalities in the prevalence of conditions that increase the severity of disease.

“Unpacking the relative contributions made by different factors is challenging as they do not all act independently.”

Unison’s Dave Prentis said: “The Government must act now.”

Chris Hopson, of NHS Providers, added: “Trusts are worried about increased risk to BAME staff.”

The Government Equalities Office said: “This valuable insight will help inform the next stages of our work to tackle the disparities highlighted by the PHE review.”