New process for contractors looking to provide off-site covid vaccines
Contractors interested in running a Covid-19 vaccination site away from their pharmacy should check NHS England (NHSE) websites ‘regularly’ as more opportunities are commissioned, Community Pharmacy England (CPE) ...
Date: 15-07-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Respiratory • Vaccinations and infections
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Quarter of all covid vaccines administered in community pharmacies
... natural home for all vaccinations.
‘Now is the time for policymakers to explore this enhanced role and build on the recently published NHS Vaccination Strategy.’
The Comirnaty (Pfizer-BioNTech) covid vaccine will be available to pharmacies to offer privately as of next month.
Pharmacy services provider Pharmadoctor revealed earlier this month that the 150 independent pharmacies using its Covid vaccina ...
Date: 15-02-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Pharmacies can offer private Pfizer Covid jabs from March
The Comirnaty (Pfizer-BioNTech) covid vaccine will be available to pharmacies to offer privately as of next month, it has been announced.
The move comes after a licensing change from the Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) which ...
Date: 13-02-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Covid-19 vaccine contract extensions to carry added spring payment
... ring community pharmacies a patient group direction package that could see them delivering private Covid vaccinations ‘within weeks’.
Boots and Superdrug are also looking into private provision of covid vaccines.
Date: 05-02-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Respiratory • Vaccinations and infections
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Pharmacies to deliver first private Covid vaccinations
... ok an appointment with pharmacies using the Pharmadoctor service through a patient website.
The Pharmadoctor package will include consultation software and integrated PGDs for all licensed private covid vaccines as they become available, the company said.
And the jabs will cost patients £45, Pharmadoctor added.
Vaccine stock will be available by 1 April and the package will be available at half-price ...
Date: 01-02-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Respiratory • Vaccinations and infections
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Covid undervaccination led to thousands of deaths in UK
People not having all their recommended doses of the covid vaccine led to thousands of unnecessary deaths and severe outcomes, researchers have found.
Over 7,000 hospitalisations and deaths might have been avoided in summer 2022 if there had been ‘full’ Covid-19 ...
Date: 23-01-2024
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections
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DHSC ‘in talks’ over private sale of covid vaccines
... rivate sale of Covid vaccinations, meaning manufacturers were free to agree deals with pharmacies to supply them.
The NHSE vaccination strategy, published last week, noted that the private sale of covid vaccines would be in line with other vaccines approved by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) that are currently sold privately, including those for flu, and ‘would not influence t ...
Date: 18-12-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Covid and flu hospital admissions twice as high in deprived areas, UKHSA warns
... e most deprived areas with last year’s figures also showing wide variation in uptake among ethnic groups between 49% to 84% in the over 65s and 28% to 54% in younger at-risk groups.
By March 2023, covid vaccine uptake was 60% in the over 50s in the white British ethnic group compared with 19% of the Pakistani ethnic group and 23% of the black Caribbean ethnic group, the report said.
At the start of this ...
Date: 11-12-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Respiratory • Vaccinations and infections
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Nearly half of Covid vaccinations this year delivered by community pharmacists
Community pharmacies have provided more than two million covid vaccines in England so far in 2023 – representing almost half (46%) of all Covid vaccinations administered this year.
The analysis by the Company Chemists’ Association (CCA), also show that to date, commu ...
Date: 24-10-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Limiting Covid boosters to the over-80s would be more cost-effective
... ith 4,020 deaths and 13,990 hospitalisations if the more restricted cohorts had been chosen.
A pre-print of a study from the UK Health Security Agency also published this week on the impact of two covid vaccines used in the spring booster campaign found around a 50% effectiveness against hospitalisation above any remaining protection from previous vaccination.
Researchers compared the Pfizer/BioNTech biv ...
Date: 11-10-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Moderna aims to license combined flu and Covid jab in 2025
Moderna has announced its combined flu and covid vaccine has generated strong immune responses in early-stage trials.
Interim results from its phase 1/2 studies found the vaccine (mRNA-1083) generated antibody levels similar to or greater than flu vacci ...
Date: 10-10-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • Vaccinations and infections
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More than one in 10 eligible given flu and Covid jabs amid ‘chaotic’ start
... me community pharmacies have already received their vaccination stocks, others are yet to do so.
And with a lower reimbursement fee for the vaccine this year and a recent change in the recommended covid vaccine there seems to be variability in what different providers are offering.
Mr Picard told The Pharmacist that some general practices in his area were inviting their patients to book a flu vaccination ...
Date: 05-10-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Community • News • Vaccinations and infections
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UKHSA: No blanket restriction on private covid vaccines
... e commercially sensitive, the UKHSA said that this had been made clear to manufacturers in conversations with them over time since the development of the vaccines.
Philippa Harvey, director of the covid vaccine Unit at UKHSA, said: ‘The Covid-19 vaccination programme continues to target those at higher risk of serious illness in line with JCVI advice, as those groups are most likely to benefit from booster ...
Date: 21-08-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Pharmacy sector considers next steps amid flu vaccination change
... he said that the ‘last minute’ change was ‘total disrespect to the already overstretched pharmacy teams who need time to plan’.
‘If they’ve discovered that it’s better to co administer the flu and covid vaccines at the same time then they should communicate that earlier, not at the last hour,’ she added.
Following NHSE’s announcement that pharmacies would be able to submit payment claims for already book ...
Date: 11-08-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Government proposes to extend pandemic vaccination regulations
... vaccines as the country transitions out of the pandemic.
These regulations have:
enabled trained healthcare professionals to conduct the final stage of assembly, preparation, and labelling of covid vaccines without additional marketing authorisations or manufacturer’s licences being required;
allowed Covid and flu vaccines to be moved between premises at the end of the supply chain, by providers ...
Date: 11-08-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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JCVI recommends autumn Covid booster for over-65s and clinically vulnerable
... This comes as pharmacists were told that they would be paid 25% less than last year for delivering the Covid-19 vaccination.
NHS England has published the new enhanced service specification for covid vaccines to be delivered between 1 September and 31 March next year, setting out that pharmacists will be paid £7.54 for each vaccine administered – down from £10.06 – and continue to be paid £10 for each ho ...
Date: 08-08-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Probe into UKHSA finds weak financial controls and 'alarming' lack of pandemic planning
... e had to compete in an overheated global market to procure items to protect the public, frontline health and care workers and our NHS.
“We were the first country in the world to deploy an approved covid vaccine, with 144 million doses administered, and we have delivered over 25 billion items of PPE to the frontline. Buying vital covid vaccines and medicines saved countless lives and kept NHS and care staff ...
Date: 05-07-2023
Categories:
• News
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Weak association between Covid jab and menstrual change, large study finds
... stantial support’ for a causal association between the Covid vaccination and healthcare contacts related to menstrual or bleeding disorders.
Many women self-report changes to their periods after a covid vaccine including excessive, frequent, absent or irregular menstruation, and a link between the vaccine and menstrual disturbance has also been discussed on social media causing global concern.
The resear ...
Date: 12-05-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Vaccinations and infections
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Vulnerable children aged six months to four years now eligible for Covid jab
Children aged six months to four years will be eligible for a covid vaccine for the first time if they are in a clinically vulnerable category.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has recommended that children under five years who are in a clinical ...
Date: 11-04-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • Covid-19 • News • Vaccinations and infections
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First and second Covid jabs offer to end in June
... me.
‘The spring booster programme is due to end on 30 June and as we live with the virus without past restrictions on our freedoms, I am also announcing that the offer of a first or second dose of covid vaccine will end at this time.
‘Covid continues to infect thousands of people every week, so I strongly encourage anyone who has not yet taken up the offer of a first or second dose of vaccine to join the ...
Date: 15-03-2023
Categories:
• Respiratory
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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 w ...
Date: 28-02-2023
Categories:
• News
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Parents are confident in vaccines, but prefer to go to the GP for them, survey finds
... A.
Think tank Policy Exchange recently recommended that all adult vaccinations in England be delivered through community pharmacies in England.
Some community pharmacies are accredited to offer covid vaccines for children, and some pharmacies in London offered the polio vaccination last year.
Date: 07-02-2023
Categories:
• News
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People urged to book Covid boosters in final week
Nearly 400,000 Covid booster appointments are available this week, giving people one last chance to book before the programme ends.
So far 15,000 people have booked their covid vaccine next week, but the NHS said there are still 391,000 appointments available.
It is urging people who have not had theirs to book before the vaccination programme scales down.
Appointments are av ...
Date: 06-02-2023
Categories:
• Clinical • News • Respiratory
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One in ten ‘bored of hearing about vaccines’, UK survey finds
... survey found that 14% of people are bored of hearing about vaccines.
In its poll of 2,000 people across the UK last month, 38% of respondents said that they were grateful to have access to flu and covid vaccines, while 25% felt that there was a sense of ‘vaccine fatigue’ following several Covid jabs over the last few years.
The BMJ predicted that this winter could be worse than usual, due to reduced immu ...
Date: 23-11-2022
Categories:
• News
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Covid pandemic ‘negatively affected vaccine confidence’
... light on the differential effect that the pandemic had on vaccine confidence in different demographic groups.’
This comes after the Department of Health and Social Care confirmed in September that covid vaccine advice for pregnant women has not changed, after false reports on social media.
A version of this article was originally published on Pulse.
Date: 16-11-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Covid antivirals could be supplied through community pharmacies
... stribution Association, which represents medicines suppliers, said that the Act recorded in legislation what has already been happening since the first Covid-19 vaccines were developed.
In the UK, covid vaccines for use in primary care are purchased by the NHS directly from manufacturers. In England, they are then sent to wholesaler-run storage hubs and distributed by suppliers to vaccine sites around the c ...
Date: 14-11-2022
Categories:
• News
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Covid booster scheme extended to people with a severe mental illness
... announced a new marketing campaign to encourage people to come forward for flu and Covid vaccinations.
More than two million autumn boosters were administered in the first fortnight of the autumn covid vaccine booster campaign, according to NHS England, with that figure surpassing 10 million last week. NHS England said that the new campaign will urge ‘millions’ more eligible people to come forward.
A ve ...
Date: 31-10-2022
Categories:
• News
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Unvaccinated have increased blood clot risk for at least a year after Covid infection
... blood clots is poorly studied, and evidence-based ways to prevent these conditions after infection will be key to reducing the pandemic’s effects on patients.’
Previously, the Oxford/Astra Zeneca covid vaccine was found to be associated with increased risk of thrombocytopenia, venous thromboembolism, and other rare arterial thrombotic events.
However, Covid infection carries a substantially higher and l ...
Date: 12-10-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Over two million autumn Covid boosters administered in first fortnight
More than two million autumn boosters have been administered in the first fortnight of the autumn covid vaccine booster campaign, NHS England has said.
It comes as Covid infection are now on the rise again for the first time since July, according to the latest ONS data.
Since launching two weeks ago, 2.1 ...
Date: 26-09-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Pregnant women targeted with covid vaccine misinformation
covid vaccine advice for pregnant women has not changed, the Department of Health and Social Care has confirmed after false reports on social media.
It comes ahead of the start of an autumn booster campaign to ...
Date: 06-09-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Dual-variant Covid jab to be used in booster campaign from 5 September
... will be engaging with professional bodies on options to support providers in prioritising the completion of vaccinations in care homes as early as possible’.
Opportunities to co-administer flu and covid vaccines ‘should not unduly delay administration of either jab’ in care homes and for the housebound, it added.
The letter said NHS England expects ‘all sites to be vaccinating at full operational capacit ...
Date: 19-08-2022
Categories:
• News
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Covid vaccination in pregnancy not linked to higher risk of stillbirth, study confirms
... study period and with gestational age of 20 weeks or more or birth weight of 500g or more.
Among the 85,162 births, around half (43,099) were in individuals who had received one or more doses of a covid vaccine while pregnant, with almost all of those people receiving an mRNA vaccine.
The researchers found that vaccination during pregnancy was not associated with any increased risk of overall preterm bir ...
Date: 18-08-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Timely Covid booster more important than type of vaccine, says government
... aid, with four jabs now on offer.
The Government yesterday accepted JCVI advice for Moderna’s updated Omicron vaccine to be offered as part of the programme.
But the JCVI’s full advice on which covid vaccines should be used in the booster campaign also includes the original Moderna and Pfizer jabs, as well as the Novavax vaccine.
The three mRNA vaccine types should be prioritised but Novavax can be us ...
Date: 17-08-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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MHRA approves new Moderna vaccine for Covid booster programme
Approval has been granted for Moderna’s new Omicron-specific booster covid vaccine, making the UK the first country to do so.
The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) today announced that it has granted approval for Moderna’s adapted covid vaccine, which ta ...
Date: 15-08-2022
Categories:
• News
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More than 16m repeat prescriptions ordered via NHS App in a year
... n is to transform the NHS App into a front door for the NHS, with many exciting new features and changes planned over the coming months and years from better access to your GP record, to booking your covid vaccine appointments.’
The Department of Health and Social Care is targeting 75% of the adult population to be registered to use the NHS App by March 2024.
Its Plan for Digital Health and Social Care, ...
Date: 22-07-2022
Categories:
• News
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More than 285,000 illegal medicines and medical devices seized by MHRA
... and supply of unlicensed medicines, shut down 43 websites, and seized more than three million fake medicines and devices worth more than £9m.
It was announced earlier this month that a new Omicron covid vaccine could be used for autumn boosters in the UK if approved by the MHRA, after Moderna said it has ‘completed regulatory submissions’ for the jab.
Date: 20-07-2022
Categories:
• News
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PSNC: Delayed flu vaccine eligibility for over 50s will cause 'confusion'
... e DHSC and NHS England, ahead of the publication of the service specification for the 2022/23 Flu Vaccination Service.
Meanwhile, Moderna has ‘completed regulatory submissions’ for its new Omicron covid vaccine, which could be used for autumn boosters in the UK if approved by the MHRA.
Date: 18-07-2022
Categories:
• News
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Autumn Covid boosters and flu vaccines to be offered to over 50s
... New health secretary Steve Barclay announced he has accepted advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), with the programme due to start in England in 'early autumn'.
A covid vaccine will be offered to:
residents in a care home for older adults and staff
frontline health and social care workers, including unpaid carers
all those 50 years of age and over
people aged ...
Date: 15-07-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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More than 200,000 Covid deaths recorded in the UK
... latest Covid surge has pushed the NHS in some parts of England to reintroduce face masks in GP practices, for staff and patients.
MPs have called for NHS England to launch a new campaign to boost covid vaccine uptake among nearly three million unvaccinated patients, with a target to reduce this to 2.5 million,
The Public Accounts Committee, which holds Government to account on spending and efficiency, s ...
Date: 15-07-2022
Categories:
• Covid-19
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Pfizer vaccine reduces the risk of Covid-19 infection in children
... nfection acquired immunity is additionally protective. It is reassuring that children recover well post-SARS-CoV-2 infection with Delta and Omicron.’
This comes after it emerged that a new Omicron covid vaccine could be used for autumn boosters in the UK if approved by the MHRA, after Moderna said it has ‘completed regulatory submissions’ for the jab.
Date: 13-07-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Moderna submits new covid vaccine to MHRA for autumn programme
A new Omicron covid vaccine could be used for autumn boosters in the UK if approved by the MHRA, after Moderna said it has ‘completed regulatory submissions’ for the jab.
Trials had shown that Moderna's updated covid vaccine ...
Date: 12-07-2022
Categories:
• Covid-19
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Three months on: How pharmacies are dealing with the cost-of-living crisis
... ot bringing in the additional revenue we do need to make up for it,’ he explains.
‘Most contractors would agree there is less cash in our pockets each month,’ he adds.
Mr Cohen did say that his covid vaccine clinic is helping him to pay the additional staffing costs, which he raised to keep up with inflationary pressures.
However, last week it emerged that pharmacies providing Covid jabs will be paid ...
Date: 05-07-2022
Categories:
• News
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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 nex ...
Date: 01-07-2022
Categories:
• News
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DHSC renews commitment to roll out Shared Care Records to community pharmacy
... vernment says NHS App users will be able to:
book COVID-19 vaccines through the app, as well as the NHS website
receive NHS notifications and messaging, including reminders and alerts for covid vaccine booking and prescription readiness
start to see notifications and messaging sent from their GP through the NHS App
start to view and manage hospital elective care appointments across particip ...
Date: 30-06-2022
Categories:
• News
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covid vaccines prevented almost 20 million deaths in first year
Covid-19 vaccines prevented almost 20 million deaths globally in the first year they were available, a mathematical modelling study finds.
Using Covid-19 death records and total excess deaths from 185 countries ...
Date: 29-06-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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NHS England sets out preliminary plans for autumn Covid boosters
... booster vaccine for some at-risk groups and frontline health and social care workers, under interim guidance.
NHS England’s new guidance reiterated that commissioners should plan to deliver autumn covid vaccines ‘on a minimum scenario for cohorts 1-6 and a maximum scenario of cohorts 1-9 without disruption to core health and care services, subject to final JCVI advice’.
It added: ‘New contracts and full ...
Date: 24-06-2022
Categories:
• News
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RSV vaccine offers 'exceptional protection' for older adults, trial suggests
... st medically attended lower respiratory tract infections caused by RSV in healthy infants.
This comes after the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved the Moderna covid vaccine for use in children aged 6-11 in April.
In May, a planned interim analysis of a Phase IIb trial of the Pfizer bivalent RSV prefusion F protein-based vaccine candidate (RSFpreF vaccine) found ...
Date: 17-06-2022
Categories:
• Vaccinations and infections
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Covid-19 vaccination protection wanes more quickly for cancer patients
... ncer Evaluation Project.
The study, co-led by the Universities of Oxford, Birmingham and Southampton and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), published in Lancet Oncology, is the first time that covid vaccine effectiveness had been examined in people with cancer on this scale.
The Covid-19 vaccination was effective in most cancer patients, but the level of protection against Covid-19 infection, hospita ...
Date: 01-06-2022
Categories:
• News
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JCVI recommends autumn Covid boosters for over-65s, vulnerable and health workers
... to ‘maintain their protection over the winter against severe Covid-19’, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced yesterday.
UKHSA said it is the JCVI’s ‘current view’ that in autumn 2022 a covid vaccine should be offered to:
residents in a care home for older adults and staff
frontline health and social care workers
all those 65 years of age and over
adults aged 16 to 64 years who are ...
Date: 20-05-2022
Categories:
• Covid-19 • News
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Fourth Covid booster gives higher immunity than third, study suggests
A fourth dose of a Covid mRNA vaccine – Pfizer or Moderna – can increase immune defences beyond the peak immunity seen following a third dose, new research suggests.
The fourth dose of a covid vaccine – sometimes known as the second booster – is currently available in the UK to those aged 75 or over, people living in care homes and those over the age of 12 who are immunosuppressed.
According to ...
Date: 11-05-2022
Categories:
• News
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