Boost North West vaccine supply say GM health bosses

There are calls for the government to release more of its stockpiles of coronavirus vaccines to the North West to help battle growing infection rates.

The number of daily reported COVID cases in the region are now back up to levels not seen since January.

In the past week an average of nearly 3,000 cases have been reported every day, having doubled in the past two and half weeks.

Professor Kate Ardern is the Public Health Director for the Greater Manchester Combined Authority she said she wants the government to up the supplies:

"The rate-limiting factor for us is the supply of Pfizer and Moderna vaccine. That's what we're having problems with."

"We are not getting those supplies through from the National Stockpile that we really need to get quickly through our younger populations."

"Colleagues in Bolton had to cancel a vaccination session they were going to have because of vaccine supply."

"The key for us is actually getting the supply through and we haven't had any joy so far in trying to persuade the government-load our Pfizer and Moderna supply."

"That would mean we can more quickly get through those younger groups because that's where the transmission is happening."

"It will help to reduce the duration of this present wave."

How is the vaccination programme going?

Generally speaking, it's still going well.

Just over three-quarters of people in the North West (76%) have now had one dose of the COVID vaccine whilst 57% have had both.

Whilst high, this is behind the average for the whole of the country where 84.4% and 61.9% have had one dose or two doses of the jab respectively.

In the past week, nearly 2.5 million doses of the vaccine were given out across the UK.

Take up is also steadily rising amongst the age groups that have most recently become eligible for the vaccine.

Across the North West, just over half of all 25's to 35's have now had at least one dose of the vaccine and 47% of 18 - 24's have to.

There's now a push to get as many people double vaccinated as possible for the next potential easing of restrictions on the 19th of July.

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