Policies on discharging patients into care homes during Covid ruled unlawful

Cathy Gardner, whose father Michael Gibson died with Covid and Fay Harris, whose father Donald died with the virus took legal action and were partially successful in their claims against the-then health secretary Matt Hancock and Public Health England.

Judges said the Government’s policy failed to take into account the risk to elderly and other vulnerable residents from non-symptomatic spread of Covid. They rejected other claims by the women made under human rights legislation and against NHS England.

When the pandemic hit in early 2020, patients were rapidly discharged into care homes without Covid testing, despite the risk of asymptomatic transmission.

Government documents showed that this was not considered necessary until mid-April.

Lord Justice Bean and Mr Justice Garnham concluded that policies contained in documents released in March and early April 2020 were unlawful because they failed to take into account the risk to elderly and vulnerable residents from non-symptomatic transmission of the virus.

They added that it was “irrational” for the Government not to have advised that asymptomatic patients should isolate from existing residents for 14 days upon admission.

Dr Gardner, 60, from Sidmouth, Devon, and Miss Harris, 58, of Alton, Hampshire, called on the Prime Minister to resign.

Speaking outside court, Miss Harris said she hoped the judgment will help families who lost loved ones “due to this Government’s reckless and unlawful policies”.

She said: “Their actions exposed many vulnerable people to a greater risk of death – and many thousands did die.

“It has only increased the distress to me and many others that the Government have not been honest and owned up to their mistakes.”

The ruling came as a Yorkshire care home boss said the sector is “still dealing with the aftermath” of the early days of coronavirus, which saw thousands of care home residents die with the illness.

Mike Padgham, managing director at the St Cecilia’s Care Group, told The Yorkshire Post that he hopes the ruling provides some “lessons learned” for the Government. “That’s the key thing, we can’t let anything like this happen again,” he said.

Mr Padgham believes that homes were “left on their own” at the start of the pandemic. Reflecting on that period, he added: “Things happened so quickly.

“It was the time the Prime Minster was in intensive care. It’s almost like the world was coming to an end.” He went on: “Staff were worried that they could contract it. Still to an extent we’re still dealing with the aftermath.”