UK eyes plan to have over-70s isolate from virus for months

The United Kingdom plans to escalate its virus-fighting measures, its top health official said Sunday, indicating that Britain is edging nearer to tactics adopted by its European neighbors that up to now the federal government has resisted.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said Britain Conservative government is preparing the next thing of its action plan, which include requiring older people to self-isolate, possibly for months. It's also planning to announce emergency legislation this week that may supply the government extra powers, such as for example quarantining persons who are sick but refuse to isolate themselves.

Britain has been going for a different approach from other countries across Europe and all over the world by declining to heavily restrict everyday activities or introduce “social distancing” measures. The UK strategy is founded on the presumption that most of the people will eventually get the COVID-19 virus and extreme measures to own it are unlikely to work.

But as infections rise in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, so has criticism of the government’s approach from British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s political opponents, scientists, and an extremely worried population. Britain's virus death toll rose to 35 on Sunday from 21 a day earlier while confirmed infections rose by 232 to at least one 1,372.

For most people, the brand new coronavirus causes only mild or moderate symptoms, such as for example fever and cough, and the majority recover. For a few, especially older adults and persons with existing health issues, it could cause more extreme illness, including pneumonia. Worldwide, some 156,000 people have already been infected, over 5,800 have died and nearly 74,000 have recovered.

Hancock said the government will set out the emergency powers on Tuesday with a bill published two days later.

“We will do the proper thing at the proper time,” Hancock told the BBC. “We will publish the bill this week coming, we changes the law in order that we take the power in order to close mass gatherings if we need to.”

Hancock said authorities can act if persons are sick but won't self-isolate.

“We will take the powers to be sure we can quarantine persons if they're a risk to public health, " he told the BBC, adding that he doubted there would be much need because persons were being responsible.

Hancock told Sky the federal government would in the “coming weeks” require persons over 70 to self-isolate for four months.

"We also need to take steps to safeguard the vulnerable, and we lay out in the plan how exactly we would be ready to do that and also to advise older people and the vulnerable who are most at risk out of this virus to protect themselves, to shield themselves, by self isolating,” Hancock told Sky News.

British supermarkets, meanwhile, pleaded with customers never to panic buy, after photographs circulated on social media of empty store shelves.

"We'd ask everyone to be be considerate in the way they shop," twelve supermarket companies said within an joint letter released by the British Retail Consortium. "We understand your concerns but buying more than is needed sometimes implies that others will be left without. There will do for everyone if most of us work together."