More than a quarter of all over-12s have received a booster jab – as Ministers grow increasingly confident that the accelerating pace of the rollout will avert the spike in Covid cases seen on the Continent.
Tomorrow will be a busy day for boosters, with 340,000+ per day. Bookers for seniors over 40 are welcome for their first booking.
Following a slow start, nearly 15 million more third jabs are being administered in Britain. That’s 25.4 Percent of all over-12s.
Pictured: Margaret Keenan, the first person to receive the coronavirus vaccine in December last year, receives her booster jab at University Hospital Coventry, Warwickshire. Picture date: Friday September 24, 2021. Fast 15,000,000 third jabs were administered in the UK.
Ministers last night urged people to come forward for a booster jab – which supercharges a person’s protection against Covid infection from around 60 per cent to more than 90 per cent – in order to enjoy Christmas safely.
This is the news:
- In the last seven days, hospital admissions dropped by 4.7% to 881 and deaths fell by 5.6% to 150.
- An estimated 50.7 million doses of the first drug have been given, which is 88.2% of all over-12s.
- Europe saw riots over the introduction of new restrictions in response to an increase in cases.
- Sage adviser Professor John Edmunds said Europe’s soaring infection rate and lockdown riots should act as a ‘warning’ as he urged people to get booster jabs.
- The World Health Organisation said it was ‘very worried’ about the spread of Covid in Europe and warned that 500,000 more deaths could be recorded by March.
- The doctors’ union was accused of threatening to halt the Covid jab rollout as a negotiating tactic over GP pay. A leaked survey of GPs by the British Medical Association suggested surgeries could refuse to administer vaccinations as part of action to oppose naming doctors earning more than £150,000. Campaigners said the union was ‘putting the nation’s health at risk’.
- Whitehall officials are discussing plans to bring in ‘exclusion zones’ – similar to those used by some countries at abortion clinics – for anti-vaxxers, which would ban them from protesting at school gates.
Tomorrow the National Booking Service (vaccinals) will be available to all people between 16 and 17 for their booster jab.
The UK Health Security Agency has published the first ever real-world study of the efficacy boosters in protecting against symptoms like Covid. Its findings show that top-up jabs increase protection to over 90% for adults older than 50.
Protection against symptoms of infection for adults 50 and older was 93.11% in Oxford/AstraZeneca patients, and 94% in Pfizer BioNTech recipients. This occurred two weeks after the booster.
If they are eligible, they can make an appointment for a booster five months after receiving their second dose.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid said: ‘Getting your Covid-19 booster vaccine is the best way to keep yourself and your loved ones safe this winter and will help reduce the pressure on the NHS.
‘While the Government is continuing to monitor a wide range of data to ensure the country remains protected, we have very sadly seen a surge in cases in parts of Europe.
‘The most important thing we can do to stop a similar rise in this country is get the jab – so please get your vaccines as soon as you can so we can keep the virus at bay.’