Charity says asthmatics should get Covid booster jab
Asthma UK says everyone who gets a flu jab should get the vaccine booster shot
A charity has called for asthma sufferers to receive the covid booster vaccine if they are eligible for a free flu jab.
Asthma UK says everyone on the list for a free flu jab should be on the list when booster coronavirus vaccines are rolled out and that thousands of people with asthma missed out on getting their original Covid vaccine on time.
Based on a survey of more than 1,200 people with asthma, calculations by the charity suggest that around half of people with the condition failed to get their Covid vaccine on time.
Asthma UK estimated that 280,000 people deemed at increased risk of dying from Covid-19 due to asthma failed to receive their first Covid jab by the end of March when they should have been vaccinated, and more than 100,000 were still waiting two months later.
In February, the Government confirmed that people with asthma would be prioritised to receive their first Covid-19 vaccine if they had a shielding letter (priority group 4) or if they had ever been admitted to hospital for their asthma or ever taken three courses of oral steroid tablets during a three-month period (priority group 6).
But this led to widespread confusion, with some patients turned away by GP surgeries, and family doctors struggling to work out who was eligible based on their risk.
Asthma UK is now urging the Government to use the free flu jab list, which includes approximately 3.4 million people with asthma, arguing this would also reduce the burden on GPs.
Meet some of the people who are working giving out vaccines
David Atherton won the Bake Off in 2019. He's now serving up vaccines in London
Elvis impersonator Dr Andy Mason vaccinated two of his backing singers, who also happen to be his daughters
Drag Race star Cherry Valentine has been part of the Vaccination programme in Lancashire (presumably not wearing those nails!)
Edgar Woodhead, on the left in his "normal" role as an airline pilot, and on the right, as a vaccinator in Ilkley, Yorkshire