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Ministers are urged to reassure vulnerable members of the public as Covid cases escalate ahead of the July 19 reopening, with MPs and activists warning they are being ‘inundated’ with emails from anxious members of the public.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid has acknowledged that new Covid cases could reach 100,000 per day in the coming weeks, as almost all restrictions are lifted, including compulsory mask wear.
A spokesperson for the Department of Health said clinically vulnerable people – those with underlying health conditions that make them susceptible to the virus, or whose immune systems are ineffective – “will want to take extra precautions.” But no advice has yet been released on how they should do this.
Jenny Harries, the former deputy chief medical officer, led the government’s work on clinically vulnerable people, but has since led the new health security agency. His successor, Thom Waite, has yet to take office – although the spokesperson said the work was continuing.
In the meantime, they said, concerned patients should accept the offer of the vaccine – and “speak to their GP for advice on how to manage the risks of Covid-19 based on their personal circumstances.”
“Standard guidelines for clinically extremely vulnerable people will be updated prior to Stage 4 to reflect the lifting of restrictions on July 19, if a decision is made to proceed to the next stage of the roadmap,” added the spokesperson. A final decision will be made by ministers in the coming days on whether to move forward with the July 19 date.
Shadow Minister for People with Disabilities, Vicky Foxcroft, who is herself immunocompromised, said the government has yet to release clinical research results on whether the vaccine is working for people in her situation. “I ask the question every week. I’m like a broken record, ”she said. “We don’t know if it’s 10% effective, we don’t know if it’s 50% effective.
She said many members of the public have already contacted her to express concern in recent weeks as cases rise due to the spread of the Delta variant. But the decision to remove almost all restrictions on July 19 raised alarm bells, she said. “They just open up. Why couldn’t they just keep wearing a little more mask?
Sources in Whitehall have suggested the government hope to release the data Foxcroft lobbied before the July 19 reopening, which is less than a fortnight away.
Another activist said they had been “inundated” with messages from people worried about being exposed to the virus, and some were canceling vacations or telling their bosses they could no longer physically go to work.
Several other MPs also told the Guardian that concerned voters are raising concerns about the high number of cases the government is anticipating and the impact of mask-wearing no longer being mandatory.
Munira Wilson, the Liberal Democrats’ health spokesperson, said many clinically vulnerable people were “deeply concerned about the government’s cavalier approach to easing all restrictions at once.” She said: ‘It is a shame that even though we are just over a week away from removing all restrictions, no guidance for vulnerable people has been issued although the government admits that the cases of Covid will increase considerably.
The Guardian understands that even some government medical advisers say they have been contacted by people concerned about how they should behave in the coming weeks.
Boris Johnson has been very vocal about the importance of replacing what he called the “diktat” of government with an approach based on individual responsibility.
Questioned on Wednesday by Keir Starmer on the prospects of a “summer of chaos” as cases skyrocket and millions are potentially forced to self-isolate, the prime minister insisted his government was adopting a “balanced and reasonable approach”.
He said the abandonment of the use of the law to enforce measures such as wearing the mask to personal responsibility was justified, as the vaccination program had “severed the link between infection and serious illness and deaths”.
The government has also delayed its plan to allow double-needled people to escape quarantine, which ministers had hoped to introduce on July 19 but have now pushed back until August 16.
More than 2 million patients deemed clinically extremely vulnerable have spent the last five months “protecting” – locking themselves in their homes – on official advice. Many relied on the kindness of neighbors and family members to help them with groceries and other essentials while they stayed inside.
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