Covid-19: Monday's update from health minister Vaughan Gething - BBC News
The health minister says 250 Covid-19 deaths so far this month are "very sobering".
Vaughan Gething has rejected claims that people are dying in Welsh care homes because Covid test results are taking too long to come back.

He said it was “an assertion, not borne out by all of the facts".

“We know there are challenges in the turnaround times for testing in care homes. We’ve been clear and upfront about that. We’re now starting to see an improving picture when it comes to Lighthouse lab turnaround,” the health minister told journalists.

Latest figures from Public Health Wales show around 20% of Lighthouse lab tests for organisations - mostly care homes - were processed within 24 hours and 82% within 48 hours.

Mr Gething said Lighthouse labs were the responsibility of the UK government.

The health minister said it was not just the test that kept someone safe which was why “there’s so much importance placed on infection prevention”.

“We’ve been helping with that throughout this pandemic by making available free PPE.”

Mr Gethting said a review on transmission within health care settings would report within the next few days and he would have more to say then.

“We’ll be clear if there is any further action to be taken to help provide people with the assurance I know they’re looking for.”

Asked when the WG would publish weekly data for outbreaks in care homes, Mr Gething replied that some information was already in the public domain via PHW and the Care Inspectorate. He said he was examining what was already published to “make sure there’s a regular provision of information.”

“I accept this is an entirely reasonable thing for people to want to see…whether there are new infections in care homes,” he added.

Mr Gething said officials were developing a way to provide the information in a transparent way, saying: “I’m expecting the issue to be resolved and then to have provided clearly and transparently as soon as possible.”