LONDON, Jan 7 – Some doctors in England will be able to offer the Covid-19 vaccine developed by AstraZeneca and Oxford University from today, the National Health Service (NHS) said, aim to vaccinate the most vulnerable within six weeks.
More than 1.3 million people in the UK have received one picture of the AstraZeneca or Pfizer’s Covid-19 vaccine.
“We aim to offer vaccinations to the majority of care home residents by the end of January and the 13 million people in the four main priority groups by mid-February,” said health minister Matt Hancock.
The government needs to raise ramps to around 2 million a week to meet their target. The main priority groups include care home residents, the elderly, clinically vulnerable people, and frontline health and social care workers.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that if the vaccine rollout is planned, new lock-in measures introduced this week would begin in February.
The AstraZeneca vaccine will be rolled out in some General Medical (GP) services, the health service said, after it was first administered in hospitals on Monday.
Another 180 GP-led vaccination services are coming online this week, with up to 100 more hospital sites. That’s on top of 700 sites that were already rolling out the Pfizer vaccine after it was approved last month.
The AstraZeneca vaccine does not meet the ultra-low temperature requirements of Pfizer, making it easier to use.
The original boxes of the Pfizer vaccine contained nearly 1,000 doses, but the NHS said smaller boxes of Pfizer vaccine were also approved for use that could be used in situations such as care homes without consuming doses.
Britain is prioritizing giving people the first glimpse of the Covid-19 vaccine to offer some protection, delaying second doses for up to 12 weeks. While some doctors have questioned the move, England’s Chief Medical Officer said on Tuesday that the risk balance was supportive. – Reuters