UK Covid Inquiry finds care homes were an afterthought

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry has released its sixth report, concluding that care homes received insufficient protection during the pandemic. Inquiry chair Baroness Heather Hallett described the failure to advise care homes to isolate patients discharged from hospitals as a ‘significant omission’ that allowed the virus to spread rapidly.

In March and April 2020, approximately 25,000 hospital patients were discharged into care homes across England to free up NHS beds before mandatory testing was implemented. In Wales, the report found that 96% of people transferred from hospitals to care homes in March 2020 were not tested, and the Welsh Government did not advise isolation for another month.

The report also criticized the lack of adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for care workers, noting that some staff were forced to use items such as painters’ overalls and waterproof ponchos. Between March 2020 and July 2022, more than 43,000 people died from Covid-19 in UK care homes.

Former Health Secretary Matt Hancock described the discharge policy as the ‘least worst decision to a terrible problem,’ but Baroness Hallett rejected his claim that a ‘protective ring’ had been placed around care homes, calling the assertion ‘unfounded.’