Do not waste precious doses on people who have recently recovered, ministers urged

‘We don’t yet know the degree or length of immunity those who have recovered from coronavirus have’

MINISTERS are being urged to wait before giving scarce coronavirus jabs to people who have just recovered from the virus, because they are immune for at least five months.

A major study from Public Health England found last week that people who had caught Covid-19 could have immunity for at least five months.

That would mean many people who have recovered could be immune until the summer, when far more vaccine doses are likely to be available.

However, despite this, ministers told Parliament last week that vaccinations for people who have had Covid-19 should only be deferred for at least four weeks after the onset of symptoms.

Nadhim Zahawi, a health minister, told MPs: “The joint committee on vaccination and immunisation are the independent experts who advise the Government on which vaccines the UK should use and provide advice on prioritisation at a population level.

“Clinical decisions will be made for those who have suffered from a Covid19 infection and it is likely that vaccination should be deferred until clinical recovery and at least four weeks after onset of symptoms.”

However, Sir Christopher Chope, a senior Tory MP, suggested that anyone who had had the virus should not be prioritised in the vaccine rollout. He said: “There was evidence published last week which shows that people, for at least five months after they have been infected by Covid and recovered, have antibody immunity. Therefore, applying the logic of people only having one jab because to get everyone up to 70 per cent is better than getting some people up to 90 per cent, maybe [those] who have had Covid in the past six months should wait for their jab to let others who have not had Covid go ahead.”

PHE’s regular testing found that naturally acquired immunity as a result of past infections provided 83 per cent protection against reinfection, compared with people who had not had the disease before. This appeared to last for at least five months from becoming ill, the health body said. A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said the “degree or length” of immunity of those recovering from Covid-19 was unknown.

The spokesman said: “As with all new viruses, we don’t yet know the degree or length of immunity those who have recovered from coronavirus have.

“The most important thing is to vaccinate those who are most at risk from Covid, so we will continue to follow the science and advice from the JCVI and chief medical officers.”