Covid vaccine: 25-29 year olds turned away by NHS booking system on first day they are eligible

Social media users say they were told by NHS website they were not eligible to book on Tuesday morning

People trying to book their Covid vaccine online were also told the NHS website was ‘experiencing technical difficulties’ on Tuesday morning (Tom Richell)

People aged 25 to 29 hoping to book a coronavirus vaccine have reported being turned away by the NHS booking system on the first day they became eligible for the jab.

The health secretary tweeted on Tuesday morning that vaccinations were now open for people in this age bracket, having announced the move the day before.

But some 25 to 29-year-olds said they were still being told by the NHS website on Tuesday morning they still could not book in for their jab.

Social media users shared screenshots of the NHS site they were “not currently eligible to book through this service”, despite ministers saying the vaccination programme was now open to this cohort.

One 25-year-old also told The Independent they were turned away after calling the NHS on 119 to book on Tuesday morning, being told they were not eligible for the jab yet.

The section of the NHS website for booking Covid jabs also said it was “experiencing technical difficulties” on the same morning.

On Monday, Matt Hancock said anyone aged 25 or over would be able to book in for a Covid vaccine from Tuesday morning in an expansion of the eligibility criteria.

On the section of the NHS website where people can book jabs, it now says anyone aged 25 or over – or who will turn 25 before 1 July this year – can use this service to book a Covid vaccination.

But some in this age bracket took to social media to say the NHS website had told them they were not eligible for the Covid vaccine after expecting to be able to book an appointment on Tuesday morning.

A spokesperson for NHS Digital said: “Large numbers of people are currently booking their vaccine appointments through the NHS website, which means you may need to wait in a queue.”

They added: “We know that some people have been receiving an ineligible message when trying to book, which is being fixed now, so please retry.”