Boosters are now being given at walk-in vaccination sites with no appointment needed as the NHS aims to ramp up jabs uptake ahead of a “challenging” winter.
From Monday, anyone eligible who had their second dose of a coronavirus vaccine at least six months ago can turn up at one of hundreds of jabs sites across England to get their top-up. People are advised to use the NHS online walk-in finder to check where their nearest centre is.
NHS England said almost every person registered with a GP practice lives within 10 miles of a fixed vaccination site. The walk-in finder website will show who can get jabs at different sites, whether it is offering boosters, vaccines for 12-15 year-olds, or anyone aged 16 and over.
Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and deputy lead for the NHS covid-19 vaccination programme said: “NHS staff are making it as easy as possible for people to get their top-up vaccination, and from today people can now go online, find their nearest site and go and get their booster without delay.
A Pfizer/BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine being prepared. Civil society groups have warned Failure to tackle global vaccine inequality at this weekend's G20 summit could prolong the pandemic.
Nick Potts
“The booster is not just a nice to have, it is really important protection ahead of what we know will be a challenging winter. “So if you are eligible, please do check the site finder and go get your jab.”
People entitled to a booster jab are: those aged 50 and over, people who live and work in care homes, frontline health and social care workers, people aged 16 and over with a health condition that puts them at high risk of getting seriously ill from Covid-19, those aged 16 and over who are a main carer for someone at high risk from the virus, and people aged 16 and over who live with someone who is more likely to get infections.
NHS England said more than six million people have had a booster jab or a third dose – the latter is being given to people with severely weakened immune systems. Prime Minister Boris Johnson urged those eligible to get boosters when he was asked about possible coronavirus restrictions during his trip to the G20 summit in Rome on Sunday.
“I think rather than thinking new restrictions, the best thing everybody can do is get that booster jab as soon as you’re offered it,” he told reporters. “It’s a very important message. I think people don’t quite realise that the first two jabs do start to wane.
“How sad, how tragic it would be if people who had other complications, other compromises in their health, got seriously ill because they were overconfident about their level of immunity and didn’t get their booster when they needed it.
“So please, please, please can everybody get their boosters.”
