Why should the government provide PPE for care homes?

“Care homes are privately run businesses, why should it be the government’s job to provide PPE?”

I’ve heard this question asked so often over the last couple of months that I thought, for what it’s worth, I’d offer my thoughts on the subject.

Like most arguments, there’s just enough truth to make you wonder. Yes, most care homes are run as commercial organisations – as private businesses. So, to an extent, yes, it does fall to the owners to provide what’s needed. But, of course, in these times nothing’s quite so black and white.

Firstly, let’s take the financials. Care homes are not overburdened with cash. Most operate on paper-thin budgets, squeezed year-on-year by wholly inadequate local authority funding. We had a care crisis before Covid-19, remember?

Then there’s availability. PPE is not easy to get hold of! Even the government initially struggled to do better than knocked-off kit from the back of a Turkish lorry. Care homes can’t just pop down to CostCo for a few boxes of PPE. The supply chain needs government control. The right kit, in the right hands, at the right time.

Finally, lets strip it right back and get to the most basic point. There are people – good, hard-working people – dying. Some of these people are working for minimum wage, and all are caring for our most vulnerable loved ones. Whoever’s job it is, if the government are in a better position to provide PPE than the homes themselves, the government damn well should be. Because if they don’t, people that I love, and people that you love, might die too.  

Bottom line, then? Maybe it is, maybe it isn’t the government’s job. But let’s all be a bit kinder and remember that every statistic is a person, a family, a life. This isn’t about blame, it’s about humanity. We can argue about responsibility after this is all finished…