ONLY 50% TO GET VACCINE

CARE-HOME RESIDENTS AND OVER 50S ‘SHOULD GET PRIORITY FOR JAB’, SAYS HEAD OF UK TASK FORCE

LESS than half the population could get a Covid-19 jab, the head of the UK’s vaccine task force has said.

Officials were hoping to be able to administer the medicine to 30million adults in the country with a population of almost 67million, Kate Bingham (pictured) told the Financial Times, adding: ‘We just need to vaccinate everyone at risk.’

She added: ‘People keep talking about “time to vaccinate the whole population” but that is misguided. There is going to be no vaccination of people under 18. It’s an adult-only vaccine for people over 50 focusing on health workers and care-home workers and the vulnerable.’

Last month, it was reported by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) that care-home residents and staff should be top of the list for a jab when one becomes available. These are followed by the over-80s, health and social care workers.

The next priority is the over75s, before other adults over the age of 50 are considered.

Health secretary Matt Hancock backed the prioritisation list at the virtual Conservative Party conference on Sunday.

He told viewers the armed forces would be involved in the rollout of the medicine and described prioritisation as ‘important because we’ve got to get the vaccine to the people who are most likely to be badly affected by coronavirus first’.

A government spokesperson said: ‘We want as many people as possible to access a Covid-19 vaccine and we are considering the advice of the independent JCVI on which groups of people to prioritise.

‘The committee’s interim advice is the vaccine should first be given to care-home residents and staff, followed by people over 80 and health and social care workers, then to the rest of the population in order of age and risk.

‘An enormous amount of planning and preparation has taken place across government to quickly roll out a safe and effective vaccine.’