Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of (1) reports that care homes have had to accept patients who have tested positive for COVID-19 from hospitals, and (2) the impact any such patients have had on deaths from COVID-19 in care homes. [T]

The safety of residents and staff is always a priority and patients should not be discharged unless it is clinically safe to do so.

We are determined to make sure discharges into nursing or social care do not put residents currently in those settings at risk. We have introduced a policy of testing all residents prior to discharge to a care home.

If appropriate isolation or cohorted care for an individual is not available with a local care provider on discharge, the individual’s local authority has been asked to secure alternative appropriate accommodation and care for the remainder of the required isolation period.

We are continuing to monitor care home deaths and are working closely with local authorities, the care sector and NHS England to understand the impact of COVID-19 on care homes and ensure everyone has access to the right care, in the most appropriate setting for their needs.

This is an unprecedented global pandemic and we will continue to work closely with the sector to keep our policies and data under review as the pandemic goes on.