Sky News has learnt that care homes are being asked to take in hospital patients who have tested positive for coronavirus.

A care home owner in Devon has described the policy as "importing death into care homes" and has accused the government of sacrificing the elderly.

New government guidelines say negative tests for coronavirus are not required prior to the admittance of a new patient.

Image: The care home is struggling with lack of staff and equipment

Care homes could also be asked to take in people currently living in their own homes - without any kind of testing for coronavirus.

The guidelines say: "Residents may also be admitted to a care home from a home setting. Some of these patients may have COVID-19 whether symptomatic or asymptomatic. All of these patients can be safely cared for in a care home if this guidance is followed."


But care homes have told Sky News they cannot be safely cared for because care homes are already desperately overstretched and struggling with staff and equipment shortages.

Graham Greenaway is the owner of the Warberries Nursing Home in Torquay, Devon.

He told Sky News: "I know that in my particular area, all of the care homeowners have been asked if they will take COVID-19 positive patients.

"And I know that absolutely, everybody said no, and there would be a very good reason for that. That would be tantamount to importing death into care homes.

"The care homes have done all the right things against all the odds - they have locked down, have cleaned continuously and have worked around the clock.

"The care staff in all of the care homes and domiciliary care providers have been working inordinately hard to try and keep the wolf from the door.

"And I think, to add insult to injury by asking us to take COVID-19 positive patients is asking us to basically make out a suicide note for people in care."

Care home workers are also deeply concerned about the lack of testing among patients and staff.

At Warberries, we met head of care Lucy Hall, who sat with a 91-year-old man as he passed away.

Image: Lucy Hall sat with an elderly man as he passed away

The elderly man had a high temperature and was cared for in isolation. Because of a lack of testing, they did not know for sure if he was COVID-19 positive, and therefore his relatives were not present.

She said: "Without testing, we didn't know what we were dealing with. I sat with him the day that he passed and I held his hand.

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"He said he didn't want to be alone. Because of the circumstances, his family weren't able to be with him. So we have to be that person and try and give him some form of dignity within the last moments of his life. And that was really hard, really hard."

"If we'd have tested him at day one and he'd come back negative, it would have been a completely different story."