Questions raised over Welsh Government policy on care homes following High Court ruling 

The High Court has ruled that the UK Government acted unlawfully by discharging untested hospital patients into care homes during the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in England.

During the early stages of the pandemic, it had been the Welsh Government policy to refuse tests to care homes where residents were not displaying coronavirus symptoms. Crucially, Welsh Government policy at this time did not require a test for all of those coming from hospital into care homes.

On 29 April 2020, Plaid Cymru’s Delyth Jewell MS raised concerns about the Welsh Government’s testing policy on care homes, noting that until April 23rd, residents were routinely returning to care homes from hospitals without being tested, unless they were symptomatic.

In his response the First Minister maintained that “a test of somebody who has no symptoms doesn’t offer you anything useful in making the right decisions for that person.”

A BBC Wales investigation at the time found that residents entered care homes from risky settings, like hospitals, untested and that care homes were put under pressure to take in infected patients.

While the Welsh Government subsequently u-turned on their policy, it led to the Older People’s Commissioner reporting the Welsh Government to the EHRC over a suspected breach of older people’s rights to life.

In May 2020, Plaid Cymru called for the Health Minister to apologise for testing failures in care homes that likely led to a huge number of deaths.

The matter had been raised repeatedly by Plaid Cymru’s Delyth Jewell, who says on the latest High Court ruling:

“Plaid Cymru was consistent in our call for universal testing in care homes, and in calling for tests for people coming out of hospital into care homes. We were told then by Welsh Government that there was no clinical basis for this. Their U-turns came too late for too many people.

“The consequences of not implementing universal testing sooner has already been laid bare in the testimonies of so many heart-broken families. This High Court ruling would indicate that their decision was not just wrong, it might well have been unlawful.”

“At the time we called this nothing short of a national scandal. Questions can now legitimately be raised as to whether this was not only scandalous, but unlawful too.”

 

Plaid Cymru’s spokesperson on health and care, Rhun ap Iorwerth MS added:

“This High Court ruling is a reminder of the importance of a COVID inquiry, because these same practices were employed by the Labour Welsh Government for patients in Wales.

“Having the Welsh perspective properly captured would give some reassurance to the loved ones of those lost thousands, and would be invaluable in understanding how to learn lessons for the future. The Health Minister wouldn’t even back my calls to give Welsh campaigners a distinct voice as core participants to the UK inquiry, which begs the question – what are they trying to hide?”