March 26, 2020 - 889 views
Clwyd West Assembly Member Darren Millar is calling on the Welsh Government to follow the UK Government’s lead in introducing a register for vulnerable adults, which would provide them with priority support for essential services, such as supermarket deliveries, amid the coronavirus outbreak.
A large number of vulnerable residents have contacted Darren in recent days to express concern that they are unable to secure home deliver slots from supermarkets and other essential supplies, forcing them to go in person to the shops, putting themselves and others at risk of contracting Covid-19.
In England a scheme has been set up to enable people to register as a vulnerable adult enabling them to access such services as a priority, and Darren has therefore written to the Health Minister in Wales urging the Welsh Government to set up a similar register for vulnerable residents in Wales.
He said: “I am receiving a large volume of correspondence from constituents wanting to register as extremely vulnerable persons to COVID-19 for the purposes of priority support for essential services and supplies such as food deliveries from supermarkets.
“Supermarkets are encouraging people to register with the UK Government via a web portal, but this only allows people in England to register and there is no similar registration process for people living in Wales.
“The lack of a register leaves vulnerable people here at a significant disadvantage when it comes to accessing the essential supplies that they need and risks vulnerable people leaving their homes to obtain supplies, putting themselves at risk of contracting COVID-19, which would add avoidable pressure to the NHS, and lives being needlessly lost.
“I have therefore written to the Welsh Government to ask them to follow the UK Government’s example and urgently establish an online portal for people in Wales to register as extremely vulnerable persons as soon as possible”.
