Give Britain the booster it needs: Critics demand NHS start top-up vaccines for ALL over-50s after it is revealed 500,000 vulnerable patients are now in line to get their third Covid jab
Ministers were yesterday urged to ‘stop hanging around’ and launch a mass booster jab programme.
Third doses will be offered to half a million people with very poor immune systems ahead of a feared winter Covid surge. But health officials are dithering over whether all over-50s should get the extra shot.
The NHS was told in June to prepare to re-vaccinate 32million Britons – with the ambitious programme slated to start next week. It has yet however to win the go-ahead from the Joint Committee on Vaccination, an independent panel which advises the Government.
The delay means the UK is lagging behind countries such as the US and Israel, where all over-12s are being offered third doses.
Ministers were yesterday urged to ‘stop hanging around’ and launch a mass booster jab programme (stock image)
Jeremy Hunt, who chairs the Commons health committee, said Israel’s campaign was reducing rates of severe illness.
‘The clear lesson for the UK seems to be to get on with booster jabs, not just for the clinically vulnerable but for everyone,’ added the Tory former health secretary.
‘The latest study from King’s College London showed vaccine effectiveness dropping after six months, so why are we hanging around?’
Yesterday the JCVI recommended that nearly 500,000 patients with blood cancer, HIV or recent organ transplants be offered a third injection. Research shows two doses is not adequate to generate antibodies in many of those who are severely immuno-suppressed.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid stressed this was ‘not the start of a booster programme’ for the wider population. As the UK recorded another 207 Covid-19 deaths and a further 35,693 cases:
Jeremy Hunt , who chairs the Commons health committee, said Israel’s campaign was reducing rates of severe illness
The experts on the JCVI are still waiting for key evidence before issuing final advice to ministers on a booster programme, including on ‘mix and match’ jabs. They want to see the results of the Cov-Boost study, led by University Hospital Southampton, which is examining the impact of a third dose on patients’ immune responses.
The epidemic has remained stable over the summer, with cases flat averaging around 34,000 a day. But experts fear waning immunity may help fuel a surge this winter – and booster doses could be vital in curbing hospitalisations.
Yesterday the Office for National Statistics revealed antibody levels are starting to decline in older adults, who were the first to receive both jabs.
It said 92 per cent of over-80s tested positive for antibodies in August, down from 95 per cent in May.
Last week a study by King’s College London concluded that the protection provided by two doses of the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines starts to wane within six months.
The Pfizer jab went from 88 per cent effective against infection to 74 per cent, while AstraZeneca declined from 77 per cent to 67 per cent.
Ministers are still confident the JCVI will give the green light for a wider programme of booster jabs for the over-50s to begin at some point this month.
A source said the decision focused on the details of the programme, such as whether to use a ‘mix and match’ approach, rather than whether to go ahead.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid stressed this was ‘not the start of a booster programme’ for the wider population
‘We have said we will start the booster programme in September and I would expect that to happen,’ the source said.
The JCVI said its ongoing deliberations over boosters was separate to yesterday’s decision to offer extra doses to seriously vulnerable patients. This rollout follows trial data showing about 40 per cent of patients who are immuno-compromised fail to produce a good antibody response after two vaccine doses.
Only the Pfizer or Moderna jabs will be offered, meaning those who had the Oxford AstraZeneca vaccine for their first two doses will ‘mix and match’.
Mr Javid said: ‘This is not the start of the booster programme – we are continuing to plan for this to begin in September to ensure the protection people have built from vaccines is maintained over time and ahead of the winter.’
Scientists remain divided on whether a wider booster jab programme is beneficial or necessary for healthy adults.
The elderly and people with underlying health conditions are likely to be included in any booster campaign. Professor Paul Hunter, from the University of East Anglia, said all over-80s and vulnerable patients needed a third jab quickly. He added: ‘The evidence is that these people won’t have responded that well to vaccine. They should be boosted and they should be boosted pretty soon.’