Most people will continue to self-isolate for Covid-19 even though they're no longer legally required to - but around one in six say they won’t bother. The Office for National Statistics found that eight in 10 people (80%) who tested positive for the virus in early February, fully adhered to the self-isolation requirements.
Almost all (98%) self-isolated after receiving a positive test, while just under three-quarters of respondents to the regular ONS survey (73%) said they stayed at home in the period between the onset of symptoms and the positive test. That was before self-isolation rules and all remaining restrictions were scrapped in England at the end of February.
According to the ONS, around seven in 10 people (72%) say they will continue to self-isolate if they catch the virus despite it no longer being a legal requirement to do so. However, 16% said they would not stay at home and avoid others if they developed symptoms or tested positive for Covid-19, while the remaining 12% have yet to decide.
Meanwhile, around nine in 10 people asked in early February (92%) said they had no problem getting their hands on lateral flow tests. That is much higher than in January, when more than one in five (22%) had struggled to pick up tests.
From April 1, the Government will stop funding free lateral flow tests for the public, meaning anyone who wants to take a test will have to pay. More than six in 10 (63%) said they would foot the bill for tests themselves.
The ONS report also found no significant difference in willingness to pay for a test between people living in the most deprived areas of the country and their more affluent neighbours. Among people living in the most deprived places in the country, 59% agreed they would pay for a test, while 64% of those living in the least deprived neighbourhoods said they would pay.
Tim Gibbs, head of the public services analysis team for the ONS, said: “Today’s data reveal more about attitudes to self-isolation among those who have tested positive for COVID-19. Around seven in 10 respondents reported that they would continue to self-isolate if they became infected with COVID-19, even if it was no longer a legal requirement. Self-isolation has played a critical part in helping to stop the spread of Covid-19, so it is encouraging to see that people understand its importance.”
But while most people have indicated that they will continue to self-isolate when necessary, the ONS results also found that there is a cost to people’s mental health. More than a third of people who tested positive for Covid-19 (35%) said that self-isolation had a negative impact on their well-being. That proportion could increase in the future now Government self-isolation support payments for people on low incomes have also ended.
