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The United Kingdom coronavirus The vaccination program could reduce nearly all coronavirus deaths as early as spring, the Covid vaccine implementation minister said.
Nadhim Zahawi said that “99% of mortality is reduced” by vaccinating everyone in the nine priority groups: those over 50, classified as extremely vulnerable from a clinical point of view, those who work in social care and workers front-line health and social care providers.
When asked how long it would take to hit those groups, Zahawi told Times Radio: “I am very hopeful that we will get past all nine categories by the spring.”
The minister said that the government is “absolutely” focused on a goal that by mid-February the first four priority categories will have been inoculated, established by the joint vaccination committee.
Boris Johnson said the government will use “every available second” during the shutdown to place an “invisible shield” around the elderly and vulnerable, through the Covid-19 vaccine.
He said that the gradual end of the lockdown may begin after the February semester, but people “should be extremely cautious about the upcoming timetable.”
In Tuesday night’s coronavirus update, the prime minister said there is a “prospect” that the Covid lockdown in England could be eased by mid-February, if the four most vulnerable categories are successfully vaccinated.
The prime minister said at the Downing Street briefing: “When a very considerable proportion of the most vulnerable groups have been vaccinated … then there really is the prospect of starting to relax some of these measures.
“But you will also appreciate that there are many caveats, many ifs built into that, the most important of which is that we are all following the lead now.”
Updating MPs on the latest Covid restrictions, Johnson said Wednesday that the government will use “every available second” during the shutdown to place an “invisible shield” around the elderly and vulnerable, via the Covid-vaccine. 19.
He said that the gradual end of the lockdown may begin after the February semester, but people “should be extremely cautious about the upcoming timetable.”
It is estimated that achieving the goal of vaccinating the four main priority groups by mid-February will mean that two million people per week in these categories will need to be vaccinated.
Professor Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, said the vaccination schedule was “realistic but not easy.”
He added: “The NHS will have to use various channels to get this out, but they are very determined to do it, but that doesn’t make it easy.
“And of course in the case of the Pfizer vaccine, as I think is widely reported, it is more difficult to handle because of the complicated cold chain model.
“We too, with both vaccines, wanted to be very careful in the first two or three days, as we slowed down a bit in case there were some unexpected initial problems.”
Mr Zahawi acknowledged that the task is “challenging” but said he is “confident” that the NHS has a “very clear plan” for the delivery of the vaccine program.
He said that if the four most vulnerable groups can be vaccinated in mid-February, there will be a “marked difference in hospitalization rates a couple of weeks after that.”
The nine most vulnerable groups, which are at the top of the list to get vaccinated, are:
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1 – Nursing home residents and staff working in nursing homes
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2 – All those 80 years of age or older and front-line health and social care workers
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3 – Everyone over 75 years old
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4 – All those 70 years and older and extremely vulnerable clinically (not including pregnant women and those under 16 years)
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5 – Everyone over 65
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6 – Adults aged 16 to 65 in a risk group (see below)
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7 – Everyone over 60 years old
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8 – Everyone over 55 years old
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9 – Everyone over 50 years old
