Calls for private vaccines amid fears 'real-deal' Covid strain spreading in UK
Vaccines should be allowed to be bought privately to head off a potentially dangerous Covid wave this winter, scientists have said.
The NHS have confirmed that vaccines will be made available to people who are "increased risk of getting seriously ill" from the virus this autumn, such as over-65s or those with an underlying health condition. NHS workers and frontline health and social care workers will also be offered the vaccine, as will care home residents.
It means less people will be eligible than last year, when the jabs were opened up to anyone aged between 50 and 65. Now senior medical experts have suggested they made available for anyone who wants to buy them.
Professor Adam Finn, of the University of Bristol and a member of the UK's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), argued in favour of the move while speaking in a personal capacity to the Guardian on Thursday. He said: "I think it will be a good idea for vaccines to be made available to those that want them on the private market. I don't really see any reason why that shouldn't be happening."
His comments have been echoed by Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, who pointed out that a similar arrangement was already in place for private flu jabs - and said Covid should be "no different". It comes as concern continues to grow over the emergence of the mutated BA.6 subvariant, as one academic said earlier this week that she had seen group chats of scientists 'buzzing' with worry over unique characteristics which could allow it to spread faster.
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Suggesting that people should start wearing facemasks to stop the spread, Dr Trisha Greenhalgh, a primary healthcare expert at the University of Oxford, wrote on Twitter: "My various science WhatsApp groups are buzzing. Genetic lineage clips and diagrams flying back and forth. I understand little of the detail but it looks like it's once again time to MASK UP."
BA.6 has so far been detected in Israel and Denmark - but infectious disease specialist Professor Paul Hunter, from the University of East Anglia, told the MailOnline on Wednesday that BA.6 variant had "probably" started spreading in the UK already. He added: "If it isn't now, then it probably very soon will be." Another epidemiologist said the new variant could potentially be named 'Pi' - the letter after Omicron in the Greek alphabet - which is used in the World Health Organisation (WHO) naming system.
A different variant, named by the WHO as Eris, is confirmed to have been spreading in the UK this summer, though is not thought to pose more of a threat than previous strains. The NHS website says local services, such as your GP, will contact you this autumn if your NHS record suggests you may be eligible for a seasonal Covid-19 vaccine. If you develop a new health condition or start treatment that severely weakens your immune system, you may need additional protection before autumn 2023.
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