Prama has called on Government to set a maximum limit on the price of facemasks used by healthcare professionals, such as those used by our 200 care staff.
Steve Robinson, Chief Executive of Prama said:
“In representing a Care Sector made up of many and diverse providers, we are seeing our costs increase by around £1,500 every week just to deliver the core care services to many older people across the area. I am, of course, tremendously grateful for the local community, who have come together and have already given support in so many ways, but I also need to ensure that my team have facemasks that comply with the proper standards, and these have rocketed in price as people try to profiteer from other people’s health needs. Masks, which were a couple of months ago only a few pence each to purchase, at one point have been selling for £12 each. That is for a mask that can only be worn for one session”.
Steve appreciates that most supplies originate offshore but believes that national Governments dictating to the market will drive costs back down to their pre-crisis levels. He continues:
“Prama is fortunate in that we had the foresight to have a reasonable stock of masks to get us so far but the last of these were distributed to staff in April and so, as a charity with limited resources, we need to find a reliable and cheap supply of masks at a price that we, and other providers, can afford. It is for this reason that I am calling on the Chancellor, Rishi Sunak MP, to set a reasonable maximum price for PPE, including facemasks, through the period of the current crisis in healthcare”.
With our head office based in Holes Bay in Poole, Prama is both a national and international charity that, as well as supporting the Human Rights of Older People on the international stage, attends a number of Westminster Parliamentary groups. Started by a local group of churches, we now provide hundreds of thousands of care hours to vulnerable and older people in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole.
To help fund this work, we have set up a local appeal to which people are able to donate to help care providers continue to make the daily visits that are so necessary to maintain personal dignity. To donate, in recognition of your own or other people’s parents or grandparents who need help at this time, visit www.justgiving/PramaCare.