Updates on pausing of shielding, changes to children's shielding advice and the new Covid-19 testing strategy
Shielding will be paused in Wales from 16 August
The latest statement from the CMO is available here.
The change in the advice means that, from 16 August, people in the shielding group can go to work or to school and go shopping but they should continue to take steps to protect themselves from coronavirus by keeping a 2 meter distance from others and washing their hands frequently.
The Chief Medical Officer has previously advised all those shielding can take unlimited exercise outdoors and meet with members of one other household outdoors. People who are shielding can also form part of an extended household.
For those who are receiving food boxes these will remain in place until 16 August. Other support for those shielding, such as the volunteer medicine delivery scheme, will be available until the end of September and priority shopping slots will continue to be available for the time being.
This advice will be kept under review and if transmission levels increase, Welsh Government may need to consider advising the shielding group to take extra precautions and measures to protect themselves in the future.
Change to advice for children shielding in Wales
The Health Minister, Vaughan Gething MS, made a statement this week about changes to the advice for children and young people shielding in Wales. Taking into consideration new evidence and experience of coronavirus, guidance from Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health has been published which indicates that not all those children and young people who are currently advised to shield need to continue to do so. It also takes account of the relative harms that can be associated with shielding unnecessarily, one of which being the impact of not returning to school.
Welsh Government is considering how to adopt this guidance in Wales over the summer. The guidance is available here.
New Covid-19 testing strategy
A new Covid-19 testing strategy was published by Welsh Government this week.The Strategy builds on the latest scientific evidence and focuses on four priority areas for testing, one of these is focused on protecting vulnerable groups and managing increased transmission rates to safeguard and control infection in groups, communities or settings with greater risks.