Sinn Féin MLA Colm Gildernew said that NISRA figures show the stark reality that Care Homes are facing the brunt of Covid-19 and reiterated calls for community testing. 

The Sinn Féin Health spokesperson said:

“These figure released today are a stark reminder of the tragedy of the COVID-19 pandemic with so many families losing loved ones and my thoughts are first and foremost with all of those who have been tragically bereaved. 

“The NISRA figured have also brought into sharp focus the fact that our that care homes are facing the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic.  

“40% of deaths from COVID-19 are in care homes. This is a stark figure. The health and social care system must ensure that care homes have testing, staffing support, admissions criteria and vital resources like PPE. 

“While the figures released today reflect the situation as of last week, it shows how rapid this virus can spread across society.  

“That is why we need comprehensive community testing, otherwise the health service will not be able to proactively fight its spread which has damaging consequences.

“We still do not have a reliable full picture of where COVID-19 is at. Collecting information and data on the virus is extremely important and has been the reason behind a recent letter from the British Office of Statistics Regulation into data handling by the Department of Health.

“We are certainly not out of the woods yet and we need to have comprehensive information and data about how the virus is behaving here to inform any considerations in easing restrictions in the future.”