Vaccination against coronavirus will continue on Christmas Day as part of a national effort to halt the spread of the new mutant virus that is spreading across the country.
British GP surgeries and hospital hubs have secured more than 100,000 places for the Pfizer jobs this week, NHS sources say.
Medical staff are preparing to admit patients during the week, even in areas with new restrictions, to maintain the rapid progress being made since Britain launched its first vaccination program. on the outside world, The Times reports.
But concerns among GPs and care workers have been growing with fears that they will not be able to maintain the current level of vaccination, as some have had to cancel orders with cancer. and heart patients due to lack of staff or enough space to protect hundreds of people a day while maintaining non-coronavirus care.
It follows promises from Health Secretary Matt Hancock that ‘several million people’ will have been vaccinated before Christmas.
It was announced yesterday that more than 350,000 people have been vaccinated by Pfizer / BioNTech injection in Britain, amid hopes that inoculation at Oxford University could agree with the New Year.
A patient will receive a first dose of their Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine in their car at a driving vaccine center in Hyde, Greater Manchester
Boris Johnson announced the figure at a briefing on Downing Street, where the Government also confirmed that London and the South East swathes will be subject to new Stage 4 restrictions from midnight.
Former Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said Saturday that the available doses of the Pfizer vaccine will run out in January and no further treatment is expected until March, meaning the vaccination program could be halted. .
He said the Oxford vaccine would make a ‘big difference’ because ‘our doses of the Pfizer vaccine will keep us going until the end of January and I don’t think we’ll get another behavior until March. ‘
But a Pfizer spokesman responded by telling MailOnline that delivery of their vaccine is ‘on track’ and that new shipments will arrive ‘by March’.
It had already emerged last week that it would take ten years for all 30million vulnerable residents in Britain to be vaccinated if the raspberry spraying operation continues at the current pace. -currently.
NHS staff are opposed to rushing to use all doses of the Pfizer vaccine within five days of leaving cold storage, meaning some patients are offered one with the GP and their hospital on the same day.
The time constraint has also led to some vaccine sites with leftover doses being offered to NHS staff to make the most of the emergency situation.
Matt Hancock has suggested today that the magic Tier 4 restrictions could be in place ‘until the vaccine is spread out’.
The Health Secretary said people in Tier 4 areas should behave as if they were infected to deal with the new variant of the disease that is spreading faster than before.
Pictured: John Schofield is injected with the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine
A worker prepares an injection of the Pfizer-BioNTech Covid-19 vaccine at a driving vaccine center in Hyde, Greater Manchester, north-west England on 17 December
He said the new strain could be caught ‘more easily from a lower level of virus presence’ as he confirmed that areas under control are likely to have the strictest restrictions in the top tier for its long boat.
The Cabinet minister said ‘we have a long way to go to resolve this’ and it will be ‘very difficult to control until our vaccine is rolled out’.
Britain has prescribed 40 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine, seven million doses of the Moderna, and 100 million doses of the Oxford vaccine.
But the Oxford Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has not yet approved the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine.
Manufacturers of the only vaccine approved for use in the UK, the Pfizer version and BioNTech, are plagued by a shortage of raw materials.
The Moderna vaccine, approved for use in the United States, reports a 94.1% efficacy in stage 3 tests, but Britain ‘s European order is unlikely to arrive until next spring – and it is yet to be agreed with the MHRA.
Dr Charlie Weller, head of vaccinations at the Wellcome Trust, said: ‘This has been such a difficult year for so many of us. What shines through for me is the speed of vaccine development.
“But we can’t be complacent. The world faces an incredible challenge in the manufacture, delivery and distribution of billions of doses to every country. ‘
Magical new restrictions imposed on swathes of Britons last night were lifted after the number of people carrying the coronavirus more than tripled in a week.
The rapid rise in areas last night into new stage 4 measures is said to be due to a new virus strain, which was first announced Monday.
Last night Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government ‘s chief scientific adviser, warned:’ The virus is gone – it ‘s moving fast. ‘
The restrictions apply in London, Kent, Essex, Buckinghamshire, Berkshire, Surrey, Gosport, Havant, Portsmouth, Rother and Hastings, all of which were previously in level 3.
Epidemiologist John Edmunds, a member of the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said: ‘This is the worst time of epilepsy due to the remarkable infection of the new snoring. ‘
Last night Sir Patrick Vallance, (pictured), the Government’s chief scientific adviser, warned: ‘The virus is gone – it’s moving fast’
He said: ‘This pressure has been mounting dramatically during the lockout and during the level 3 restrictions that Kent and other parts of the South East have experienced.
‘While the locking was enough to bring things down elsewhere, it was not enough to stop this pressure from spreading quickly. We need far tougher steps to bring the incident down.
Worse, we are starting from an already very high frequency with stretched hospitals and stressed NHS staff. It is a dangerous situation. ‘
A study shows that Rochford, Essex, was the worst hit area, where the number of cases rose by 207 per cent, from 180 to 533 in a week. Elsewhere in Essex, Castle Point saw an increase of 183 per cent, from 182 cases to 516, while Epping Forest recorded a spike of 140 per cent.
Diseases in some London cities have risen by almost 150 per cent.
Richmond saw cases go up 148.4 percent, Enfield 109.5 percent, Lewisham 137.5 percent, Hammersmith and Fulham 130 percent, Southwark 117.2 percent, Sutton 118.9 percent and Lambeth 152.3 percent.
The number of people catching the virus in Kent has also risen. Sevenoaks had an 118 percent increase, with 942 cases, up from 431, and Swale has the most cases in the county with 1,127.
Significant increases have been recorded in conveyor belt towns such as Woking in Surrey with 327 infections recorded up to 14 December.
Cases in West Berkshire County rose 149 percent, from 149 cases to 244, and diseases in Rother spewed 123 percent.
The rapid rise in areas last night into new level 4 measures is said to be due to a new virus strain, first announced Monday
Mole Valley, which is at the heart of Surrey, halfway between London and the Sussex coast, more than doubled its figures from 70 to 177 cases, while Reigate and Banstead saw a 132 per cent increase.
Dr Chris Whitty told a briefing on Downing Street yesterday that there had been a ‘real’ increase in the proportion of cases seen with the new variant.
Screening tests suggest that in the South East of England 43 per cent of the virus was now the new variant, in the east it was 59 per cent and in London 62 per cent. The new snort is expected to spread on a corridor from Kent to London, before sowing seeds in the capital and then spreading to the Home Counties via travel routes. The Office for National Statistics estimated Covid had 567,300 people last week, up from 481,500 seven days earlier.
Tracey Crouch, Conservative MP for Chatham and Aylesford in Kent, responded to the latest boost by tweeting: ‘I feel very down (personally & professionally) about tougher restrictions… but I also understand why this has happened.
Our local hospitals have reached capacity, the virus and the new variant are huge in our community. There needs to be a focus on vaccine distribution. ‘
Tudor Price, deputy head of the Kent Invicta Chamber of Commerce, said the new restrictions for the county were ‘disappointing but not surprising’. He said: ‘This is the worst case scenario in terms of business but which is easy to understand from a public health perspective. I have sympathy for those businesses that need to close now. ‘
Conservative MP Sir Roger Gale, who owns the North Thanet constituency in Kent, said: ‘It is very sad but if we are to enjoy Christmas and at the same time stay safe, it is vital. that everyone will abide by the restrictions announced this afternoon.
‘The alternative will be a very dangerous and terrible start to 2021.’