Care home residents, care workers and 'housebound' invited for Covid autumn booster

Millions of people including care home residents, those with weakened immune systems and care workers are being invited to receive the autumn Covid-19 booster vaccine from today.

From 5 September, the NHS will visit hundreds of care homes to vaccinate residents and staff this week, with thousands more planned throughout September and October. Millions of invitations will also arrive on people’s doormats from 7 September inviting them to book an vaccination appointment.

Around four million people who are at highest risk, including people aged 75+ and those with weakened immune systems, will be eligible to book a vaccine through the National Booking Service. Some 26 million people in England will be eligible for an autumn booster over the next few weeks.

Steve Barclay: 'The housebound' among first to receive their jabs

Speaking ahead of the rollout on 5 September, Health and Social Care Secretary Steve Barclay, said: “Our autumn booster programme kicks off from Monday, with care home residents, staff and the housebound the first to receive their jabs.

“An autumn booster will top up the immunity of those most vulnerable to Covid ahead of the winter to help us continue to live with this virus without restrictions. “Please come forward for your booster and flu vaccine when invited."

The UK Health and Security Agency stated: ‘This winter it is expected that many respiratory infections, including Covid-19 and flu may be circulating at high levels – this may put increasing pressure on hospitals and other health care services.’

Booster for everyone on the GP learning disability register and their carers

To increase immunity in people at higher risk of severe Covid-19 this winter, those eligible to receive the autumn booster are residents in care homes for older adults and their staff, home care workers, NHS staff, everyone aged 50+, people aged 5+ in a clinical risk group and carers aged 16+ (as identified in Green Book guidance).

An NHS England bulletin sent to GPs stated: ‘People aged five and over on the GP learning disability register are eligible for the Covid-19 autumn booster vaccine following updated Green Book guidance. Please offer the Covid-19 autumn booster vaccination to everyone on the GP learning disability register and their carers.’

Anyone aged 5-49 years-old who are household contacts of people with immunosuppression are also eligible for the booster.

A record 3,100 sites are expected to be part of the rollout, including GP practices and community pharmacies, with new sites joining the programme all the time.

The public will be given a booster dose of a vaccine made by Pfizer or Moderna. They may be offered an updated combination version of these booster vaccines. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has said ‘timeliness of vaccination is more important than the type of booster vaccine used’.

The JCVI has advised the use of the Pfizer-BioNTech bivalent vaccine as an autumn booster as well as other approved vaccines.

Mr Barclay added: "It is absolutely vital we are not complacent as winter approaches. I have therefore accepted the advice of the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to add a Pfizer bivalent vaccine to our autumn Covid booster rollout.

“Along with the Moderna bivalent vaccine, this safe and effective vaccine will target two different variants – Omicron and the original Covid strain. These innovative vaccines will broaden immunity and strengthen our defences against what remains a life-threatening virus.”

More than 126 million Covid vaccines have been administered by NHS staff and volunteers since the first Covid-19 jab was delivered outside of clinical trials in December 2020.

Professor Wei Shen Lim, Chair of Covid-19 immunisation on the JCVI, said: “Winter is typically the time of greatest threat from respiratory infections. We strongly encourage everyone who is eligible to have their booster vaccine this autumn when it is offered."