Delays on jab in care homes

‘Top priority’ group forced to wait

ON THE WAY Truck leaves Pfizer in Belgium yesterday

THE first vaccinated care home residents will have to wait until the New Year before they are immune, because of problems getting the Covid-19 jab into facilities.

Elderly residents must wait until at least the second week of January despite being the top priority.

NHS England is identifying patients who are either aged over 80 or staff who work at a care home who have existing hospital appointments next week.

While on the wards, they will be among the first people in the world to be given doses after Britain approved the vaccine on Wednesday.

The NHS says it cannot yet bring doses of the Pfizer jabs into care homes as Britain’s regulator has not approved packs of 975 to be split before being transported.

Approval by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is not expected for at least a fortnight, the Mirror understands.

Caroline Abrahams, director at Age UK, said: “It is becoming increasingly clear that older people living in care homes are unlikely to get access any time soon, even though they are – rightly – at the top of the priority list for vaccination.

“Realistically, it will be early 2021 before large numbers are fully protected.”

The 50 hospitals identified as vaccination hubs are the only NHS facilities that have ultra deep freeze facilities to store the jabs at -70C. Once out of deep freeze, it can be stored at 2C to 8C for five days.

The hubs will select patients who can

return for a booster dose 21 days later. Hospitals are hoping some care home staff and a small number of residents can also be brought in.

Chris Hopson, of NHS Providers, which represents hospitals, said: “We have to work on the precautionary basis this initial batch of 800,000 could be the only batch we receive for some time. It is vital hospitals seek to vaccinate as many of [the] highest priority groups as possible in the initial phase.”

Immunity does not develop until at least seven days after the second dose.

NHS England is planning on the basis it will not be able to get both doses to care home patients until January – meaning the earliest residents would be immune is January 7.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation had outlined the first priority group should be care homes residents and staff. The second priority group is people aged over 80 and NHS staff. A small number of the most at- risk frontline medics will also be vaccinated next week.

Deputy chief medical of f icer Jonathan Van-Tam said: “The NHS and MHRA are working really hard to try to find a solution, so we can get this into care homes if we possibly can.”

He suggested they may need to wait for the Oxford University vaccine to gain approval which is “much easier to split into smaller quantities and probably can go into homes”. Downing Street confirmed the NHS is “working closely” with the regulator to administer the Pfizer jab in homes.

Britain is believed to have taken delivery of the vaccine yesterday – as the death toll passed 60,000. Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove also had “constructive discussions” with devolved administrations on how to distribute the vaccine.

But there was confusion last night as the Scottish government said MHRA rules did allow for packs to be split under certain conditions, as it announced vaccines will be in care homes by December 14.

Wales will start routine testing of frontline health and social care staff on the same date.

It is understood the Black Country Living Museum and Birmingham’s Millennium Point are among 46 mass vaccination centres to be set up.

Ex-US presidents Barack Obama, George W Bush and Bill Clinton said they are willing to be vaccinated on TV to show the vaccines are safe.