Funeral Industry News

Covid-19: Update to regulations and guidance

March 16, 2022 by No Comments | Category COVID-19, Guidance, Test and Protect

Yesterday, 15 March 2022, the First Minister announced a number of important changes to coronavirus-related restrictions to take place from Monday 21 March, and indicative dates for future easings.

From Monday 21 March:

  • the legal requirement on businesses and service providers to retain customer contact details will end;
  • the legal requirement for businesses, places of worship and service providers to have regard to Scottish Government guidance on COVID, and to take reasonably practical measures set out in the guidance, will also end.

These legal requirements will be replaced with appropriate guidance, and it is recommended that businesses continue with these measures.

The legal requirement to wear face coverings on public transport and in certain indoor settings will be retained in regulation at this time.

This decision will be reviewed again in two weeks, and the expectation is that this regulation will convert to guidance in early April (assuming no significant adverse developments in the course of the virus).

Vaccination

The vaccination scheme will continue to be extended in line with expert advice. All five to 11 year olds are now able to receive the vaccine. Care home residents, those over 75, and everyone over 12 years old who is immunosuppressed, will also be invited for an additional booster six months after their last vaccination.

Testing

The Scottish Government has recently published a test and protect transitional plan, setting out the detail of how the Government intends end testing for people with and without COVID-19 symptoms. In summary:

Advice on testing will remain the same for the next month:

  • lateral flows should be used twice weekly even if you do not have symptoms, daily for seven days if you are a close contact of a positive case and before visiting someone who is vulnerable
  • If you have symptoms, you should continue to get a PCR test, either at a testing site or by post.

From 18 April, testing advice will change:

  • people without symptoms will no longer be advised to test twice weekly
  • With the exception of health and care settings, the advice to test regularly will end for workplaces, and for early learning and childcare settings, mainstream and special schools, and universities and colleges.

Until end of April:

  • we will continue to advise using LFTs daily for seven days if a close contact, and on each occasion when visiting a hospital or care home
  • we will continue to advise those with symptoms to get a PCR test
  • contact tracing of positive cases will also continue

Where testing continues to be advised, it will remain free of charge.

From end April, the Scottish Government’s intention is to end all routine population-wide testing and contract tracing. From 1 May, testing will be used on a targeted basis to support clinical care and treatment, protecting higher risk settings, and for surveillance, outbreak management, and responding to significant developments (such as new variants).

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