Covid and flu jabs scrapped for under 65s in NHS rollback

The number of people entitled to a free jab through the NHS will be nearly halved from the 26million eligible last year, though vulnerable groups will still be covered.

The announcement has spread ripples of alarm through the medical community, with some professionals speaking out publicly to express fears that the UK will not be adequately prepared for the winter.

Before the pandemic, flu jabs were offered to adults over the age of 65, children and younger adults with health conditions.

The scope of eligibility was widened during the pandemic to include those aged 50 to 64, in line with the rollout of Covid boosters.

This extension is set to now be rescinded, with only those aged between 50 and 65 in a clinical risk group, working as carers or healthcare workers remaining eligible for Covid and flu jabs.

Children aged between two and 17 will instead be offered flu nasal sprays.

In 2022-23, some 40.6 per cent of those aged between 50 and 65 in England came forward for a flu vaccination, which was a decrease on the 45.7 per cent seen the previous year.

Likewise, 51.7 per cent of the same age range accepted the invitation for a Covid booster last winter, which was a notable fall from 77.6 per cent the year before.

Despite the seemingly lacklustre turnout rates, the free jabs still provided between 5 and 6 million people with immunisation last year.

It comes as health professionals glance concerningly at Australia’s flu season, which usually forecasts the winter ahead for England.

NHS England warned a board meeting last month that Down Under has experienced “one of the biggest flu seasons on record.”

Last winter saw flu admissions at their highest for a decade in the UK, with concerns growing that a rollback in vaccinations could exacerbate the spread of flu this winter.

Professor Lawrence Young, a virologist at the University of Warwick, told MailOnline: “I think that this is very short-term thinking that will inevitably result in more people getting sick — increasing the burden on the NHS.

“If anything, the Covid pandemic has reinforced the need for improved public health measures such as vaccination to protect against infectious disease.”

FLU LATEST:

• Nose-picking health workers more likely to catch Covid, study suggests
• Defra puts rural livelihoods and conservation in peril after 11th hour decision impacting £2billion industry: 'A kick in the teeth!'
• Covid lockdowns will lead to future surge in violent criminals - new analysis
• Thousands of seabirds dying as Avian Flu rips through colonies

He added: “It appears that these decisions on restricting free access to vaccinations is more about cost cutting than protecting people's health.”

Dr Adrian Boyle, the president of the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, last month raised fears that NHS plans to tackle the winter flu season were inadequate and accused the government of “blithely sailing towards an iceberg”.

An NHS spokesman said: “The NHS flu vaccination programme will begin in October based on the latest clinical evidence – it will maximise protection for patients right across the winter months when it is typically colder, and viruses are more likely to spread with people spending more time indoors.

“The NHS is working to ensure a growing number of vaccine sites across England offer both flu and Covid-19 vaccines in the same visit, to make it as convenient as possible for people to get life-saving protection from both viruses ahead of winter.”

New parameters of eligibility were confirmed in a latter sent by Dr Thomas Waite, England's deputy chief medical officer, Dr Mary Ramsay, director of public health programmes at the UKHSA and Steve Russell, NHS England's director for vaccinations.

Those Britons ineligible for a free flu vaccine will still be able to pay for one at their local pharmacy.