Covid self-isolation rules to continue for NHS England staff
Self-isolation rules will remain in place for NHS England staff despite the government removing the legal requirement for the general public to self-isolate following a positive Covid-19 test from Thursday.
In a letter from NHS management sent on Wednesday, hospitals and GP surgeries were told that staff should continue to follow the current rules, which require people to quarantine for a minimum of five days after testing positive and until they have recorded two negative lateral flow results.
The latest data from the Office for National Statistics, published on Wednesday, showed Covid infection rates were continuing to fall in England, with one in 25 people infected with coronavirus in the week ending February 20, down from one in 20 the week before.
Across the UK, about 2.5mn people had Covid in the last week, down from 2.9mn a week earlier.
This week the government published its “Living with Covid-19 plan”, which involved scrapping free tests for most people from April onwards apart from elderly and vulnerable individuals and social care staff.
The decision to maintain the isolation and testing requirements for healthcare workers comes amid uncertainty over future funding for Covid testing.
Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, said he was “concerned” that long-term funding for NHS staff testing may come from “existing care budgets”.
“We don’t want patient care to be compromised if the government abandons its commitment from the early days of the pandemic that the NHS would have all the costs of Covid fully met,” added Hopson.
The letter said NHS leaders would “communicate further about testing provision for NHS staff and patients” as this is agreed with the UK Health Security Agency and The Department of Health and Social Care.
The letter encouraged staff to continue accessing free tests through the government ordering platform or community pharmacies until the offer expires on March 31.
Any NHS staff member unable to come to work due to self-isolation requirements would be entitled to full pay, the letter added.
Matthew Taylor, head of the NHS Confederation, which represents organisations across the healthcare sector, called on the government to “reconsider” its planned changes to the testing regime “to ensure [NHS staff] are not excluded” from accessing free tests after the end of March.
“We’re pleased NHS England has re-emphasised the importance of self-isolation for NHS staff who have Covid,” said Taylor. “The best way to guarantee this across the NHS is to ensure that free tests continue to be available for all NHS staff, with dedicated funding set aside.”
Infection control measures in place in healthcare facilities will continue, according to the letter, including “the requirement for staff, patients and visitors to wear a mask and or face covering”.
In a separate development, the government came under fire from trade unions after recommending a below inflation pay rise of between 2 per cent and 3 per cent for NHS staff other than doctors, dentists and senior managers.
In its annual submission to the independent pay review body, it argued that the pandemic had “highlighted the significant value of job security in both the NHS as well as the public sector more widely” and noted that since the NHS budget was now set “there are stark trade-offs between pay and other NHS spending”.
Pat Cullen, RCN chief executive, said the proposal “shows the UK Government is not serious about tackling the nursing workforce crisis, retaining expert and experienced nursing or making patient care safer”.