Half of care home residents vaccinated in three weeks

NHS England has announced that the NHS Covid-19 Vaccination Programme has vaccinated more than 150,000 older adult care home residents in England (over half of all those eligible) in just three weeks since the campaign began.

Roving teams have visited more than 6,000 care homes since the campaign launched on Monday 3 April. As of Tuesday 25th April, 153,460 care home residents have taken up the offer – 50.2 per cent of those eligible.

Around 6.6 million people are eligible for this round of vaccinations in line with JCVI guidance, which includes people 75 and over, those aged five and over with a weakened immune system, and care home residents.

NHS director of vaccinations and screening Steve Russell said: “Our fantastic NHS staff continue to deliver covid vaccines with speed and precision, prioritising those who are most vulnerable from covid once again and vaccinating more than 150,000 care home residents.

“I am really pleased to say that just three weeks into the campaign, we have visited more than half of older adult care homes, vaccinating more than half of all eligible residents, and I would encourage anyone due a spring dose to book an appointment at the earliest opportunity and join the more than one million giving themselves maximum protection for the months ahead.”

Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at UKHSA, said: “The highest hospital admission rates for Covid-19 continue to be among the over-75s, so it is important everyone in this age group keeps their immunity topped up by coming forward for their spring booster.

“The virus has not gone away and we continue to see thousands of cases reported every week, so topping up your protection is particularly important for groups who are more vulnerable.”

Image by Arek Socha from Pixabay