Covid-19 Daily Bulletin
27 Jul
27 July 2020
A series of daily updates for CHO members regarding relevant updates pertaining to Coronavirus from home and abroad.
Key Announcements
• Over the weekend, the Government made the decision to s crap its travel corridor with Spain and re-introduced quarantine measures at short notice due to a jump in cases across mainland Spain.
• The BBC has reported that 21 people have tested positive for coronavirus at a caravan park site in Shropshire
• The Guardian is reporting that, according to Government figures, only 19 families of the NHS and social care workers who die d after contracting coronavirus have so far been approved for the £60,000 compensation scheme from the Government.
Regional /Devolved
• Beauty salons and tattooists in Wales are allowed to reopen for the first time since lockdown, the BBC has reported , along with driving lessons.
International
• Sky News is reporting that Vietnam is evacuating 80,000 people, mostly local tourists, from the central city of Danang after three residents tested positive for the virus.
• The Times is reporting that Spain’s battle to combat a recent surge in virus showed no sign of diminishing this weekend with fresh restrictions on the country’s nightlife and intensified local lockdowns.
• The Guardian is reporting that the global effort to produce useful anti-Covid medicines is being hampered by the US because researchers are testing drugs in “an arbitrary, willy-nilly way”
• North Korea has declared an emergency and a lockdown in a border town after a person suspected of having coronavirus returned from South Korea after illegally crossing the border.
• The Guardian is reporting that coronavirus cases in Papua New Guinea have nearly doubled in a weekend, with the emerging pandemic threatening to overwhelm the country’s already-fragile healthcare system
• South Korea has said that the man suspected of being North Korea’s first confirmed case did not have the virus, the BBC reports.
• The Telegraph reports that the French Prime Minister has raised the possibility of a second lockdown as the number of coronavirus infections continues to rise
Stakeholders
• Responding to the latest ONS figures for deaths involving COVID-19 by local area and socioeconomic deprivation, Dr Layla McCay, a director at the NHS Confederation, said: “These figures lay bare the true scale of the ravages of COVID-19 in areas with the highest levels of deprivation, casting a harsh spotlight on some of the ways the virus has worsened health inequalities and widened societal divisions. Equality is one of the core principles of the NHS, but we can clearly see that communities have been impacted differently by the coronavirus outbreak depending on levels of affluence.
• Responding to the Government announcement extending its fly programme this winter, Emily Holzhausen, Director of Policy and Public Affairs at Carers UK, said: “We welcome the Government’s decision to expand the flu vaccination programme. Despiteunpaid carers already being eligible for a free flu jab, we know that a significant proportion haven’t formally recognised their caring role or aren’t aware they’re eligible, so don’t get vaccinated… It is really important that there is clear, consistent public messaging targeted at carers to ensure that they know they are eligible, and GP practices are proactive in identifying unpaid carers and encouraging them to book a flu jab.”
• Nick Thomas-Symonds MP, Labour’s shadow Home Secretary, responding to reports that tourists returning to the UK from Spain will have to quarantine for two weeks, said: “The news will be deeply concerning for families who are in caught Spain or are planning travel – the Government needs to come forward now with full details of how people affected will be supported.”
Unconfirmed
• The Guardian is reporting that Government sources said it was prepared to act quickly and impose rules, if needed, to other nations