Living with parents on UC!

Spoonie_Turtle

TheShape said:

KatrinaWaves said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

KatrinaWaves said:

wilfred30 said:

I've never heard of anyone being on the shielded list just because they're fat so that's a somewhat strange explanation!

Initial lists had those with a BMI of 40 and over sent home from my work. 

There's the list for clinically vulnerable, who should be practising strict social distancing and hygiene precautions, then there's the list of clinically extremely vulnerable, who were sent the letters advising them to shield. Obesity is in the first category, the same as diabetes. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing#clinically-vulnerable-people
So are over 70s, actually. OP did your parents get a letter telling them to shield?

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19#clinically-extremely-vulnerable-groups

I'm also not sure what the Post Office has to do with anything?

Oh I agree. After the first lists came out with asthma, diabetes and weight there was hardly anyone left in my workplace. Many of these have returned but not all. Put a lot of strain on the remaining ‘healthy’ staff, and their mental health,  to be honest. 

Tell me about it.  The number of people in my workplace who said 'I'm a bit fat!' or 'I was a bit out of breath once, must be asthma!' and just switched off their computer and went home (not seen since), no questions asked, was absolutely ridiculous.  The desperate attempts by some to avoid doing any work now after perhaps 8-12 weeks of having been required to complete no work at all are pathetic.

KatrinaWaves said:

TheShape said:

KatrinaWaves said:

Spoonie_Turtle said:

KatrinaWaves said:

wilfred30 said:

I've never heard of anyone being on the shielded list just because they're fat so that's a somewhat strange explanation!

Initial lists had those with a BMI of 40 and over sent home from my work. 

There's the list for clinically vulnerable, who should be practising strict social distancing and hygiene precautions, then there's the list of clinically extremely vulnerable, who were sent the letters advising them to shield. Obesity is in the first category, the same as diabetes. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing/staying-alert-and-safe-social-distancing#clinically-vulnerable-people
So are over 70s, actually. OP did your parents get a letter telling them to shield?

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19/guidance-on-shielding-and-protecting-extremely-vulnerable-persons-from-covid-19#clinically-extremely-vulnerable-groups

I'm also not sure what the Post Office has to do with anything?

Oh I agree. After the first lists came out with asthma, diabetes and weight there was hardly anyone left in my workplace. Many of these have returned but not all. Put a lot of strain on the remaining ‘healthy’ staff, and their mental health,  to be honest. 

Tell me about it.  The number of people in my workplace who said 'I'm a bit fat!' or 'I was a bit out of breath once, must be asthma!' and just switched off their computer and went home (not seen since), no questions asked, was absolutely ridiculous.  The desperate attempts by some to avoid doing any work now after perhaps 8-12 weeks of having been required to complete no work at all are pathetic.

People who got the flu jab was another one. There is a leisure branch to my work as well which apparently is full of lifeguards about have such severe asthma they have to shield... 

No doubt many of them are the same people who don't wear a mask and don't see the need to observe any distancing, leaning over other people in the supermarket and ignoring the one-way systems. Drives me mad - and I only have to hear it second-hand, as I'm fortunate to be able to shield by choice (last week I found out that ME/CFS is classified as a chronic neurological disorder - not that that's filtered down to ANYone I've seen from the NHS - so it turns out that technically I *am* under the vulnerable category. Before that though, I thought it was unlikely to kill me or even hospitalise me, but still extending likely to knock me out so hard that I'd be bedbound for months or years, and nobody wants that. 90% housebound is quite ill enough for me, thank you!)

The rest of my household are either vulnerable or officially shielding, but the two other vulnerable ones have still had to go back to work in schools.

[Deleted User]

The actual lists are not quite that simple.  If you are asthmatic, you have to have had recent hospitalisation or high dose steroid therapy to qualify as extremely vulnerable.  Diabetes, the list is more specific than you are saying.  Consequently despite having quite nasty diabetes, asthma and arthritis I am not officially extremely vulnerable.  However I do self isolate as much as possible.  So if anyone is isolating from work, if they don't have a letter saying they are exremely vulnerable, they are self isolating.  Nothing to do with that particular list defining what is extremely vulnerable.

Spoonie_Turtle

deannatrois said:

The actual lists are not quite that simple.  If you are asthmatic, you have to have had recent hospitalisation or high dose steroid therapy to qualify as extremely vulnerable.  Diabetes, the list is more specific than you are saying.  Consequently despite having quite nasty diabetes, asthma and arthritis I am not officially extremely vulnerable.  However I do self isolate as much as possible.  So if anyone is isolating from work, if they don't have a letter saying they are exremely vulnerable, they are self isolating.  Nothing to do with that particular list defining what is extremely vulnerable.

Indeed. That was the point we were making: the first list are people who should practice strict social distancing and hygiene measures - but only people on the second list (including respiratory disorders only at a severe enough level, mostly) were to receive the letter and shield. [If anyone thought they were on the second list but didn't get a letter they were to ask their GP to confirm whether they should have received a letter or not.] Individual workplaces at the start of the pandemic, before they had any guidance, could of course implement their own policies. Some were not comfortable making people who were vulnerable (but not extremely vulnerable) work because social distancing was not possible.

But that was and still is up to individual employers, in addition to any government guidance - although then being able to furlough workers certainly facilitated that because only extremely vulnerable people told to shield (or those who had suspected Covid) were eligible for SSP.