| Quarter of all Covid vaccines administered in community pharmacies ... comes in the wake of NHS England’s decision to extend the national enhanced service for the Covid-19 vaccination programme until 31 August 2024 and confirmation of eligibility for the spring Covid-19 booster programme. Malcolm Harrison, chief executive of the CCA, said: ‘Administering over 40 million Covid-19 vaccines, a quarter of all vaccines to date, is a truly fantastic achievement by the sector. This is de ... Date: 15-02-2024 Categories: • Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Covid-19 vaccine contract extensions to carry added spring payment Pharmacies currently providing the Covid-19 vaccine are being asked by NHS England (NHSE) to extend their service provision contracts until 31 August 2024. The extension covers a potential spring booster programme, with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) set to publish their guidance soon. While the fee for the extension period remains at £7.54 per vaccination, NHSE has agreed that a ... Date: 05-02-2024 Categories: • Clinical • Community • News • Respiratory • Vaccinations and infections |
| Covid boosters needed as vaccine protection wanes after six months, finds UKHSA ... gh the changing transmission rates and severity associated with emerging variants indicating that vaccination is a key factor in reducing deaths from Covid-19. While the study shows that continued booster programmes are needed to keep deaths from Covid-19 low, more investigation is needed on the appropriate age cut offs, the team said. An analysis from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCV ... Date: 02-01-2024 Categories: • Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Limiting Covid boosters to the over-80s would be more cost-effective ... programme’s complexity and could negatively impact uptake, the JCVI added. The impact assessment also looked at the option of sticking with vaccinating the over 50s as had happened in last year’s booster programme but it was found to have a negative net monetary benefit. The analysis did note that this option also has the greatest unquantified benefits such as protecting NHS capacity and preventing long-Covid. ... Date: 11-10-2023 Categories: • Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| JCVI recommends autumn Covid booster for over-65s and clinically vulnerable ... er. And it is in line with the eligible age range for the influenza vaccination. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has made its recommendation ahead of the third autumn booster programme and advised completion by early December. It has been accepted in full by the Government. Those eligible for the Covid-19 booster vaccine this autumn are: residents in a care home for olde ... Date: 08-08-2023 Categories: • Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Vulnerable children aged six months to four years now eligible for Covid jab ... is not going away so I would encourage all parents to bring their child forward if they are eligible. Parents should wait to be contacted by their local health professionals.’ The Spring Covid-19 booster programme also starts this month with care home residents being offered the vaccine first. It is also the last chance for anyone to get a first or second Covid vaccine dose with the offer being removed in J ... Date: 11-04-2023 Categories: • Clinical • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Pharmacy commissioning: Will ICBs be the sector’s friend or foe? ... sting premises [and] the role of community pharmacy in the programme has continued to increase, with community pharmacy delivering over 60% of the Covid vaccinations in phase 5, and for the Spring 23 booster programme, community pharmacy will be the main provider for the vaccinations.’ But with room for improvement? Nonetheless, since it’s relatively early days, it’s not surprising that there are still some ... Date: 03-04-2023 Categories: • Analysis |
| First and second Covid jabs offer to end in June ... and immunosuppressed individuals aged 5 years and over. And Mr Barclay confirmed that the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation had advised that four vaccines would be used in the spring booster programme: Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent Moderna bivalent Sanofi/GSK monovalent (beta variant) Novavax monovalent (wild-type variant) but only when alternative products are not considered clinically s ... Date: 15-03-2023 Categories: • Respiratory |
| Pharmacies asked to begin spring Covid booster campaign in April Community pharmacies and other providers have been asked to prepare for this year’s spring Covid vaccine booster programme which should begin on 17 April and end on 30 June. The campaign will offer booster vaccinations to those aged 75 and over, residents in care homes, and those aged five and over who are immunosuppr ... Date: 28-02-2023 Categories: • News |
| Covid boosters should be offered to high risk patients in spring and autumn, says JCVI ... elect groups of patients at high risk, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has recommended. Interim advice to the Government has recommended planning begin for a 2023 autumn booster programme for those at higher risk of severe Covid-19 because of age or clinical risk factors. And a smaller group of people, including those of older age and those who are immunosuppressed will also be off ... Date: 25-01-2023 Categories: • News • Respiratory |
| Over two million autumn Covid boosters administered in first fortnight ... eliver ‘accelerated’ autumn Covid boosters with payments of up to £525 per completed care home. GP leaders had raised ‘serious concerns’ about the financial and workload implications of the autumn booster programme. Pharmacies taking part in the autumn booster programme are paid £10.06 for each Covid-19 vaccination they administer – over £2 less than they were paid previously. Under recommendations from t ... Date: 26-09-2022 Categories: • Vaccinations and infections |
| NHS England denies issues with Covid booster supply ... liver a service – and we would very much like to do that – then you have to have the means to do that.’ She also highlighted that many pharmacies will have invested in the workforce to deliver the booster programme, such as by contracting vaccinators and transforming premises, amid increasing financial pressures on pharmacies and a reduced fee for providing the Covid vaccinations this year. ‘If they’re not gett ... Date: 06-09-2022 Categories: • News |
| Dual-variant Covid jab to be used in booster campaign from 5 September ... oster doses ‘in line with’ a recommendation from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). It said: ‘JCVI advise that deployment of a single type of vaccine throughout the autumn booster programme promotes simplicity and is therefore desirable. ‘In line with the JCVI recommendation, the NHS will deploy a single type of vaccine (bivalent vaccines) – the mRNA bivalent Omicron BA.1/Original ‘w ... Date: 19-08-2022 Categories: • News |
| Timely Covid booster more important than type of vaccine, says government ... rioritised but Novavax can be used off-label as a booster dose for over-18s ‘in exceptional circumstances’. The AstraZeneca Covid vaccine is excluded from the autumn campaign. Under last year’s booster programme, Pfizer and Moderna vaccines were recommended, although anyone unable to have the mRNA vaccines could have an AstraZeneca jab instead. All UK patients aged under 40 had been offered Pfizer or Mode ... Date: 17-08-2022 Categories: • Vaccinations and infections |
| MHRA approves new Moderna vaccine for Covid booster programme ... isease as the virus continues to evolve.’ Professor of pharmacoepidemiology at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Professor Stephen Evans said: ‘Whether this will be used in the UK booster programme will depend on other factors, including cost and what estimates of clinical efficacy are derived from analysis of the antibody response.’ He added that the ‘similarity’ of the new component target ... Date: 15-08-2022 Categories: • News |
| London children aged 1 to 9 to be offered Polio booster vaccine ... th Security Agency (UKHSA) said delivery of the boosters should start ‘no later than 15 August, with all one to nine year olds having been offered a vaccination by 26 September’. It said the polio booster programme should be considered ‘equivalent priority’ to other time- sensitive vaccine programmes such as Covid-19 and flu. The campaign will begin in the London boroughs ‘where vaccine-derived poliovirus ty ... Date: 10-08-2022 Categories: • Vaccinations and infections |
| Three months on: How pharmacies are dealing with the cost-of-living crisis ... ional staffing costs, which he raised to keep up with inflationary pressures. However, last week it emerged that pharmacies providing Covid jabs will be paid 20% less per vaccination in the autumn booster programme than in previous campaigns – with an item of service fee of £10.06, down from the current rate of £12.58. PSNC services director Alastair Buxton says the new fee reflected how NHSE&I did not r ... Date: 05-07-2022 Categories: • News |
| Pharmacists to be paid less for autumn Covid boosters Pharmacies are to be paid less per Covid vaccine during the autumn booster programme compared with previous programmes. According to the draft service specification, published yesterday (29 June), pharmacies that support the provision of the next booster programme in the autumn wi ... Date: 01-07-2022 Categories: • News |
| Covid vaccines prevented almost 20 million deaths in first year ... eople aged 75 years and over have not received a vaccine within the past six months, putting them more at risk of severe disease. NHS England has this month set out its preliminary plan for an autumn booster programme, with pharmacies able to apply to deliver booster jabs. Date: 29-06-2022 Categories: • Vaccinations and infections |
| Covid-19 vaccination protection wanes more quickly for cancer patients ... ty of Southampton, said: ‘This study shows that for some people with cancer, Covid-19 vaccination may give less effective and shorter-lasting protection. This highlights the importance of vaccination booster programmes and rapid access to Covid-19 treatments for people undergoing cancer treatments.’ Current NHS guidance says people who have cancer or have received treatment for certain types of cancer may be at ... Date: 01-06-2022 Categories: • News |
| JCVI recommends autumn Covid boosters for over-65s, vulnerable and health workers ... oint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has recommended that certain at-risk groups should receive another Covid booster vaccine in the autumn. Under the ‘interim’ advice, the autumn booster programme would cover ‘more vulnerable adults’ alongside frontline health and social care workers to ‘maintain their protection over the winter against severe Covid-19’, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) a ... Date: 20-05-2022 Categories: • Covid-19 • News |
| Fourth Covid booster gives higher immunity than third, study suggests ... Clinical Research Facility and the trial lead, said the results ‘underline the benefits of the most vulnerable people receiving current spring boosters and give confidence for any prospective autumn booster programme in the UK, if the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation considers it needed at that time’. Sajid Javid, the health secretary, added: ‘This is further evidence underlining the importance ... Date: 11-05-2022 Categories: • News |
| Spring Covid booster programme reaches three million Almost three million people who are the most vulnerable to Covid have had their spring booster jab in the six weeks since the latest phase of the NHS Covid vaccination programme started. This means more than ... Date: 09-05-2022 Categories: • Vaccinations and infections |
| Welsh Government expands free flu vaccine programme for another year ... corded yesterday (12 April) and 288 deaths within 28 days of a positive test. Previously, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) indicated that there is likely to be an autumn booster programme for Covid-19 vaccinations across the UK and there may be opportunities for co-administration throughout the 2022-23 season. ‘Those planning and administering vaccines should utilise these opport ... Date: 13-04-2022 Categories: • News |
| Pharmacy Covid jabs better value for money than mass vaccination centres, finds NAO ... le, had less wastage and made greater use of pharmacies than had been expected when first put in place, the National Audit Office found in an analysis. The report, which did not include the recent booster programme, found: Between the start of the Covid-19 vaccination campaign and the end of October 2021, 87 million doses had been given with 85% of adults having received two doses, far higher than the 75% th ... Date: 28-02-2022 Categories: • News |
| Pharmacies could be involved in spring Covid booster programme ... expected to be the primary delivery model for this part of the programme.’ It did not mention to what extent pharmacies sites would be involved, however, pharmacies have taken a large role in the booster programme this winter. In January, The Pharmacist reported that pharmacy-led vaccine sites across England have delivered one-third of all booster vaccines. NHS England added that it would set out furthe ... Date: 24-02-2022 Categories: • News |
| Vulnerable patients to be offered further Covid boosters in spring and autumn ... inst severe Covid-19’. However, ‘to maintain high levels of protection for the most vulnerable individuals in the population, an extra spring dose of vaccine is advised ahead of an expected autumn booster programme later this year,’ he added. ‘The JCVI will continue its rolling review of the vaccination programme and the epidemiological situation, particularly in relation to the timing and value o ... Date: 21-02-2022 Categories: • Covid-19 • News |
| One-third of all boosters delivered by pharmacies ... ribution to the vaccination programme and is proud to be part of this remarkable NHS effort. 'More pharmacies have put themselves forward and these should be processed speedily, with the immediate booster programme in mind as well as readying pharmacies for a future, ongoing role', he said. Date: 13-01-2022 Categories: • News |
| More GPs directing patients to pharmacies because of Covid, but not via CPCS ... ake this case to the NHS,’ he added. Thorrun Govind, RPS English Pharmacy Board Chair, acknowledged that both pharmacy teams and general practice are under ‘a lot of pressure’ to deliver the Covid booster programme, but reminded GP practices that the CPCS referral pathway can help relieve some of these pressures. She said: ‘With continued pressures across the health service, it is more important than ever th ... Date: 21-12-2021 Categories: • News |
| Exclusive: Pharmacies likely to be heavily involved in annual Covid booster programme Community pharmacies in Wales are likely to be very involved in an annual Covid booster programme if repeat doses are decided to be necessary, a Government official has confirmed. Speaking to The Pharmacist yesterday (15 December), Andrew Evans, Chief Pharmaceutical Officer in Wales, said it i ... Date: 16-12-2021 Categories: • News |
| Observational time after jab could be scrapped in ‘next few days’, says CMO ... ay behind for a 15-minute observation period after their Pfizer or Moderna Covid vaccination could be scrapped in the ‘next few days’. Speaking at an all-systems briefing on the stepping up of the booster programme over the next few weeks, UK chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty said the CMOs ‘have been looking at this repeatedly over the weekend’ and ‘consulting with others’, ‘including, importantly, M ... Date: 14-12-2021 Categories: • News |
| Pharmacies need ‘level playing field’ to increase speed of vaccination rollout, says sector ... ’s needed most.' The NPA's director of external and corporate affairs, Gareth Jones, added: 'In light of the Prime Minister’s announcement on Sunday evening about a further ramping up of the Covid booster programme, we are in touch with NHS officials about the role of pharmacies in this intensified nationwide campaign. Pharmacies have already given millions of Covid jabs, including boosters, and there is potent ... Date: 13-12-2021 Categories: • Covid-19 • News |
| Pharmacists could continue vaccinations at off-site venues beyond the pandemic ... level of protection among populations. This month, the Government announced it had secured more than 100 million additional doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which could be used in future booster programmes. The Government has said it plans to commission 1,500 pharmacies in England to deliver the booster vaccine this winter. Other proposals listed in the consultation document include: increasing ... Date: 09-12-2021 Categories: • News |
| Covid booster jab: Over-40s invited to book after three months ... heir jab online through the National Booking Service or by calling 119 and GP practices ‘are also inviting those who are eligible’, it said. Health secretary Sajid Javid said: ‘We are boosting our booster programme to get more jabs in arms more quickly and from today, millions of people over the age of 40 in England will be able to pre-book their booster jab two months after their second dose, a month ahead of ... Date: 08-12-2021 Categories: • News |
| Pharmacy technicians may administer Covid booster under PGD ... Covid-19 vaccine since January, however, not under a PGD. Malcolm Harrison, CEO of the Company Chemists Association, said that ‘small technical legal change’ could not only help bolster the Covid booster programme, but also ‘enhance’ the attractiveness of the technician role. ‘We also support wider efforts to evolve the role of the pharmacy technicians, enabling them to take on additional roles which would ... Date: 03-12-2021 Categories: • News • Respiratory |
| Pfizer chief says annual Covid booster vaccines are likely ... y high level of protection,’ he said. This comes as the Government announced it had secured more than 100 million additional doses of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines, which could be used in future booster programmes. Supplies of vaccines for the current booster campaign were secured in August, but the recent deal adds another 114 million doses to the existing order. The UK is expecting 60 million of the v ... Date: 02-12-2021 Categories: • News • Respiratory |
| Waking up to community pharmacy? ... push on Covid 19 booster vaccinations was notable for several reasons. One was that the arrival of the new coronavirus variant Omicron is being taken seriously enough that the half-hearted Covid booster programme needs to be put back on track. Another was the speed at which Government is acting. But also - listen up - was that community pharmacy featured prominently in the announcements as a primary route for ... Date: 02-12-2021 Categories: • Views |
| Eligibility for Covid boosters expanded to all over-18s ... given in 3 months, in line with the clinical advice on optimal timing.Both the Moderna (50 microgram) and Pfizer-BioNTech (30 microgram) vaccines should be used with equal preference in the Covid-19 booster programme. Both vaccines have been shown to substantially increase antibody levels when offered as a booster dose. In addition, JCVI advises the following secondary measure, subject to appropriate ... Date: 29-11-2021 Categories: • Clinical • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Welsh pharmacies begin administering booster vaccines Pharmacies in Wales have been commissioned to deliver Covid booster vaccines for the first time. Swansea Health Board announced this week that it had started to involve pharmacies in the booster programme to ‘ensure the booster is available locally’ and while GPs are ‘busy delivering flu vaccines on top of their usual services,’ the health board said. Thirteen pharmacies in the Swansea area, along ... Date: 26-11-2021 Categories: • News |
| Covid booster vaccines extended to over-40s ... n into 2022’. Speaking at a press briefing, he confirmed that 40-49s should be given either the Pfizer vaccine or a half-dose of the Moderna vaccine for their booster, in line with the rest of the booster programme so far. He added: ‘It may well be that adults who are under 40 years might require a booster dose or third dose at some point.’ England’s deputy chief medical officer, Professor Jonathan Van-Ta ... Date: 15-11-2021 Categories: • News |
| Immunosuppressant holiday may boost Covid jab response ... immune-suppressing medicines.’ It follows another study done in Korea which showed a two-week treatment holiday from methotrexate improved responses to influenza vaccination. Under the current booster programme, cohorts 1-9 of the first phase of the Covid vaccination campaign are being offered a jab six months after their second dose – with GPs told to prioritise boosters in care homes. Third jabs for pa ... Date: 12-11-2021 Categories: • News |
| Government must use pharmacy ‘more’ in booster programme, says Ashworth The shadow health secretary is urging ministers to make greater use of community pharmacy to do more Covid vaccines to fix the ‘stalling’ booster vaccination programme. Speaking outside of Yakub’s Chemi ... Date: 01-11-2021 Categories: • News |
| Welsh pharmacies deliver 300k Covid vaccines ... it stands, over 5 million Covid vaccines have been delivered in Wales, with over 71% of the population now vaccinated. It is still unclear how much involvement community pharmacy will have in the booster programme, which began in September. However, Mr Goodway told The Pharmacist that he believed ‘the focus will continue to be on MVCs’. ‘I am aware of a couple of pharmacies that are already delivering th ... Date: 28-10-2021 Categories: • News |
| Anti-vaccine graffiti and posters discovered on Northern Ireland pharmacy ... ty pharmacies in Northern Ireland had administered over 143,000 doses of the Covid jab. Last week (13 October), the Department of Health announced that the Covid vaccine booster programme in Northern Ireland will be delivered mostly through community pharmacies and GP surgeries. In July, The Pharmacist reported that a family-run village pharmacy serving as a vaccination centr ... Date: 20-10-2021 Categories: • News |
| More Covid booster jabs could be redirected to pharmacy ... This comes as the NHSE today (14 October) published a plan for improving access to GP appointments for patients and to support GPs and their teams ahead of winter. If practices taking part in the booster programme — ‘phase three’ — are providing an ‘inappropriately low’ number of face-to-face appointments for patients, Covid vaccine appointments should be passed on ‘most likely through community pharmacy’, NHS ... Date: 14-10-2021 Categories: • News |
| NI booster programme ‘primarily’ delivered through pharmacies and GP surgeries The Covid vaccine booster programme in Northern Ireland will be delivered mostly through community pharmacies and GP surgeries, the Department of Health (DH) has announced. It comes a we ... Date: 13-10-2021 Categories: • News |
| MHRA green-lights Pfizer and AstraZeneca Covid vaccines for booster use The UK medicines regulator has approved the use of a third dose of both the Pfizer and AstraZeneca Covid vaccines ahead of an expected announcement about booster jabs. Both vaccines have been approved fo ... Date: 10-09-2021 Categories: • News |
| Select immunosuppressed people should have third vaccine separate to booster programme A select group of people who are considered severely immunosuppressed should be offered a third dose — or ‘top up’— of the Covid vaccine separate from the national booster programme, the vaccine committee has re ... Date: 01-09-2021 Categories: • Covid-19 • News |
| UK trial launched to test third Covid jab in immunocompromised people ... CTAVE DUO study which will analyse the immune response and the durability of protection after a third dose but also rates of Covid-19 infection. Pharmacies in England are preparing for a booster programme for the most vulnerable due to run from sometime in September, although exactly who will be prioritised is yet to be finalised. A final decision from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunis ... Date: 27-08-2021 Categories: • Clinical • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections |
| Double-jabbed carry similar levels of Covid as unvaccinated, study finds ... mme today (19 August) that the JCVI would be ‘imminently deciding’ who will need a third dose of the vaccine, but they needed ‘more evidence’ before making a firm decision on a broader booster programme. Date: 19-08-2021 Categories: • News |
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