The health ministry has intervened at some cares in Mallorca. | Miquel À. Cañellas

TW
0

Balearic health minister Patricia Gómez explained to parliament on Tuesday that the number of active coronavirus cases among residents of care homes has come down from 140 on December 22 to 34.

Gómez was asked by Marga Durán of the Partido Popular if she felt that protocols for care homes have been adequate. "Or have they been left to their own devices?" The minister stressed the "effort, commitment and hours of dedication of health teams, social services, island councils and care home management". She noted that the government has intervened directly in the running of twenty homes where there have been outbreaks.

Related news

The minister added that almost all residents and staff have received a second dose of the vaccine. The death rate is "much lower than the average for the country".

Durán thanked the efforts, dedication and sacrifices made, but noted that 256 residents have died. Management, she argued, "has been characterised by a lack of adequate measures and transparency and by improvisation and lies". The PP deputy referred to an Amnesty International report which found that measures adopted by regional governments and the Spanish government have been "late, insufficient, without resources and inadequate".

Between July 15 and December 31, Durán observed, 129 residents died, a figure that was "one of the highest in the whole of Spain". Gómez attacked PP "falsehoods" and pointed to objective data which showed the decrease in the number of active cases.