More than 200 previously unreported coronavirus deaths occurred in care homes in the week up to April 3, the Office for National Statistics (ONS) revealed today.
A total of 406 deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales took place outside hospitals, according to provisional figures from the ONS - around 10% of the total at that time.
The figures released every day by the government, collated by the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC), only include deaths in hospitals.
The ONS handles all deaths registered in England and Wales.
Of the 406 deaths registered up to April 3 that occurred outside hospitals:
- 217 took place in care homes
- 33 in hospices
- 136 in private homes
- 3 in other communal establishments
- 17 elsewhere
The equivalent figure for hospital deaths over the time period was 3,716.
But the real toll of care home deaths is likely to be much higher - because the ONS figures only include deaths registered by April 3.
Yesterday England's chief medical officer Chris Whitty said 13.5% of all care homes in the UK (11,300) are confirmed to have at least one case of Covid-19.
Last week the figure was 9%.
The 217 figure is significantly less than the 'about 1,000' estimated by Cabinet minister Therese Coffey earlier today.
Care England chief executive Martin Green today warned the industry is "working a bit blind" without daily figures.
He said: "There are thousands of people sadly who have now shown symptoms and also sadly as well thousands of people who've died."
He called for universal testing and figures from care homes to be collected and released daily, like those in the NHS.
Care England, the industry body, said on Monday that roughly 1,000 residents could have died from Covid-19 - with even more 'unrecorded' deaths 'swept under the carpet'.
The Work and Pensions Secretary said it was not “currently possible” to get the figures daily like in NHS hospitals but “I’m sure improvements will continue to be made where that is absolutely possible”.
She added: "I think that the certification by doctors is happening regularly, that is being collated by the ONS and it is being published weekly by the ONS.
"I think that is a fair system of getting that picture, that unfortunate picture, across the country of where deaths are happening due to coronavirus and I think that is a trustworthy way to go about this by the medical certificates signed off by doctors."
Care homes such as Stanley Park in Durham have already suffered terribly from the bug - 13 residents have died since the end of March have displaying symptoms of Covid-19.
It has not been disclosed how many other residents at the 72-bed home are ill, reports the BBC.
Likewise 13 residents are reported to have died at one care home in Essex.
There have reportedly been five deaths at Almond Court in Glasgow.
Among care homes that have been seriously affected have been Burlington Court Care Home, in Glasgow , where 16 people died, and Palms Row Healthcare in Sheffield where eight people died in less than two weeks.
Ms Coffey had a row on ITV’s Good Morning Britain over the decision to charge VAT on PPE going to care homes.
She said VAT “can be reclaimed by all those care homes” so “in essence they won’t pay any VAT on it ultimately.”
But ITV host Piers Morgan demanded: “Stop them doing unnecessary paperwork. Let them do what they’re supposed to do - save lives.”
And asked how many NHS or care workers had died of coronavirus she admitted: “I don’t know the answer to that.”
Ms Coffey said she did not agree with former pensions minister Baroness Altmann - who warned elderly people feel they are being treated "like lambs to the slaughter".
"In fact, the PPE is being delivered to over 26,000 care settings across the country including care homes, home care providers and also hospices," she said.
