6th UK death

[Helenj1977]

How are these older people getting it? Surely someone in their 80's with health issues isn't going on holiday??

Something isn't right. Only 321 cases but already 6 older people, with issues have died. How did they get it???

They need to start testing more people to start saving these peoples lives.

I've just been taking to my daily fail loving parents who in one breath exclaimed "It's only a cold, everyone's panicking for nothing" and a minute later "Why aren't we testing everyone who lands at our airports? Anyone could have it."

I love them dearly but jeez, which is it?! Oh and apparently it's the 'snowflake ' generation who are being hysterical.

No they probably haven’t been abroad I think the reality is it’s more widespread and being transmitted already within the uk possibly has been for some time as some people will assume it’s just a bad cold

Dps parents are mid 70s with health issues. They've said they'll go out more of they're told not to!

I'm mid 30's and ready for lockdown!

It is worrying.

This time of year places like Spain, Tenerife, Italy and cruise ships are chock full of elderly people on holiday.

An elderly family friend with serious health issues was due to go on holiday abroad in a couple of weeks time. His Dr has now banned him strongly deterred him from going.

At least one of them had been in Italy I think.

They need to start testing more people to start saving these peoples lives.

If we massively increase the number of tests done, the longer it will take to get the results as a backlog builds up.

Older people will be hugely overrepresented in the death stats, so it is "right" in terms of the ratio to cases, as they're far more vulnerable. They get it because a) they do travel a lot with those lovely pensions, and b) They don't take it seriously and if my mother is anything to go by, don't really care about hygiene or think it matters. She's got heart trouble, high blood pressure etc. but said her recent holiday to Italy wasn't a problem because apparently she isn't weak ....

How are these older people getting it? Surely someone in their 80's with health issues isn't going on holiday??

Yes people in their 60's, 70's and 80's with health issues do go on holiday, why wouldn't they if their issue is controlled or managed with medication ?
Whether it is a good idea to continue to do so, is a totally different matter.

Thats actually a very good point. So it’s either been here for longer than we’re being led to believe and its been community transmission or they’ve all been abroad/in contact with someone who has tested positive. I know that the man who died last night had been to Italy but not sure about the others.

Just a note that most of these “underlying conditions” when I’ve seen them broken down are things like hypertension and diabetes. These are serious things, but in the words of one doctor it’s hard to find a patient over 60 not taking pills for some such condition.

So I take issue with the U.K. government emphasising this. It’s a clear attempt at panic minimisation but it’s very offensive to people with illnesses (implying it’s okay they were broken anyway) and it’s disingenuous because most over a certain age have some chronic health issue — doesn’t mean it was ever going to kill them until Covud came along.

We are both over 60 and are quite unusual in our friendship group. We don't go on holidays several times a year. Many older people travel all year apart from in the school holidays when they come back to care for grandkids.