The prime minister has already been accused of misleading parliament over the allegation. He did so last week after the Supreme Court ruled that the government had acted illegally by ordering patients to be discharged from hospitals without examinations in the spring of 2020. Johnson told the House of Commons: “What we did not know specifically was that Covid would could be transmitted asymptomatically “. However, the prime minister commented on documents addressing the issue at a press conference for Covid on March 25 – several weeks before the rules were amended to ensure that all patients were examined before being admitted to a care home. At the press conference, he asked Chief Scientific Adviser Patrick Valance about reports that many people could have the disease without symptoms. “Patrick, on the number of people who have the disease asymptomatically, there was a study I saw from Oxford academics that said that up to 50% may have had it asymptomatically,” he said. “How do you evaluate it at this stage?” Vallance said studies in China and Italy had identified asymptomatic cases, but the role of these cases at the population level was unknown. He also said that the new antibody tests “will be able to determine how many people have had the disease asymptomatically and this will be important to understand what to do next”. He added: “These tests are very important. We need more than that. “ Martin Green, CEO of Care England. Photo: Hollie Adams / Getty Images Nursing homes emerged as a major victim in the first Covid wave. In mid-March 2020, the NHS England had told hospitals to “urgently discharge” patients to help release 15,000 beds. Compulsory examinations were introduced for patients who were discharged until April 15. About 25,000 patients were discharged to nursing homes in the intervening period. Last week’s Supreme Court ruling listed many cases in early 2020 when the risk of asymptomatic transmission was raised by scientists and ministers. A statement from the government’s lawyers said: “There is no doubt about that. [the government] he realized that it was possible for asymptomatic people to carry the virus to care homes. ” A government spokesman responded to the findings by saying that the court “recognized that this was a very difficult decision at the beginning of the pandemic, the evidence for asymptomatic transmission was uncertain”. Martin Green, chief executive of Care England, said that even if there was no evidence of asymptomatic transmission, ministers should have made a mistake in terms of attention, as the dangers were well known. “The Sage government’s advisory committee had identified the issue of asymptomatic transmission in early 2020, but if there was any doubt about transmission-related issues, then this should have led to a clear directive that no one should to be transferred between any area of health and care without a Covid test. “ Johnson also acknowledged in a March 18 press conference the problems posed by the virus. “The subject of this disease is an invisible enemy and we do not know who is transmitting it, but the great thing about taking a test to see if you have it or not is suddenly a green light that goes over your head. ” If he did not understand that it meant that people without obvious symptoms could be among those who transmitted the virus, other people were ready to point it out. Lord Bethell, then Under Secretary of Health, was clear on this during a debate by the Lords on 9 March 2020 on the government’s first regulations on Covid, which created the power to keep people in isolation if they were a danger. . He told members: “A large number of people are infected and contagious but completely asymptomatic and never approach a test kit.” At that point, the public was informed that the incubation period for Covid could be up to 14 days and most people had no symptoms until three to five days after. There was no evidence at that stage of how Covid was transmitted – prompting hand washing tips instead of using a mask – but the high level of infectivity and the possibility of asymptomatic transmission were actively discussed by scientists and commentators. The Imperial College report, which had such an impact on the government’s initial response to the virus – and which led to widespread dislike among lockdown skeptics of its lead author, Professor Neil Ferguson – said they assumed 50% more infectious than asymptomatic individuals “. A government spokesman said: “It is clear about the understanding of the virus that changes over time and that it changed significantly day by day, especially at the beginning of the pandemic.” They said the “overwhelming majority” of last week’s ruling was in favor of the government and that the figures for the asymptomatic transmission were “extremely uncertain”. They added: “Our thoughts are with all those who lost loved ones during the pandemic. “Throughout the pandemic, our goal was to protect the public from the threat to life and health posed by Covid-19, and we specifically sought to protect caregivers based on the best information available at the time.”
