Coronavirus: Thousands of shielding letters go to wrong addresses

Image copyright
Getty Images

The Welsh Government has “sincerely apologised” after 13,000 letters meant for people most vulnerable to coronavirus were sent to the wrong addresses.

More than 80,000 people are meant to get a “shielding letter” from the chief medical officer.

Plaid Cymru said it was a “potentially disastrous mistake”.

The Welsh Government said all letters have since been reissued to the correct addresses.

The letter is for those with serious underlying health conditions and advises people to stay at home for 12 weeks.

It also contains information and advice, including how those who have no-one else to support them can get medication and other essential items like food.

The letters should have been delivered by 3 April.

Those eligible for the letter qualify for priority delivery slots from supermarkets, although there have been delays introducing that system here.

Image caption

Delyth Jewell said the mistake could “needlessly endanger lives”

The Welsh Government said local authorities and supermarkets had been provided with the correct addresses from the outset, with the latter using these for delivery slots.

Plaid Cymru’s local government spokeswoman Delyth Jewell said: “This is a potentially disastrous mistake which could needlessly endanger lives.”

She called for details of “what went wrong for this to happen in the first place”.

A Welsh Government spokeswoman said: “Due to a processing error within the NHS Wales Informatics Service (NWIS), some shielding letters were posted to a previous address, where the intended recipient had recently moved.

“All letters have since been reissued to the correct addresses.

“We provided all local authorities with the correct details from the start of this process, and they have been directly contacting each person involved over the past two weeks.”

She added: “We fully understand the concern this would have caused people and sincerely apologise for the mistake.”