Elderly Britons may be told to self-isolate for four months under the government’s “wartime-style” effort to combat the spread of the Wuhan coronavirus.
The government of the United Kingdom is expected to impose a swathe of new measures to fight the further spread of the virus and to prevent the National Health Service (NHS) from “falling over” during the peak of the epidemic.
Within the next 20 days, those over the age of 70 will be told to self-quarantine in their homes or care homes for up to four months, a Government source told ITV.
Boris Johnson’s government is concerned that the quarantine will lead to the death of elderly people from neglect, and will call on friends, neighbours, and relatives to help older people during their isolation.
Dominic Cummings, the chief advisor to the Prime Minister, has reportedly been reaching out to Deliveroo and Uber to help bring food to the elderly, as well.
“We are looking for a huge community effort,” the source said.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirmed that the imposition of self-isolation for the elderly is in the “action plan” — but added that the Government will not enact the plan until “it is the right time to do so”.
“We absolutely appreciate that it is a very big ask of the elderly and the vulnerable and it’s for their own self-protection,” he told Sky News.
Aside from the quarantine of the elderly, the Government is planning to enact temporary closures of public spaces such as pubs, bars, and restaurants, as well as banning mass gatherings.
The Government is also planning to requisition private hospitals, hotels, and other buildings to aid its efforts against the virus.
The measures are intended to prevent the nation’s socialised healthcare system from becoming overburdened, which could lead to rationing of care — particularly for those over the age of 65, as has already begun in Italy, the epicentre of the European outbreak of the coronavirus.
“Everything is aimed at making sure the NHS is not overwhelmed, to save lives and to prevent hideous choices having to be made,” a source said.
The death toll from the virus reached 21 on Saturday, and over 1,140 people have been confirmed to have contracted the coronavirus, according to the BBC.
Next week the Government will introduce emergency legislation to combat the spread of the virus, giving the state the power to detain “any vehicle, train, vessel or aircraft” and the ability to close ports if there are “insufficient resources” in the event border security officials become sick, The Times reports.
The emergency legislation will also empower the police to arrest and forcibly quarantine those who are sick but fail to self-isolate.
“We are going to take the powers to make sure that we can quarantine people if they are a risk to public health, yes, and that’s important,” Mr Hancock said.
Follow Kurt on Twitter at @KurtZindulka
COMMENTS
Please let us know if you're having issues with commenting.