Covid: Vaccine offered to all care home residents in England, says NHS

Boris Johnson hails ‘crucial milestone’ in race to protect most vulnerable

Coronavirus vaccines have been offered to residents at every eligible care home for the elderly in England, according to health officials.

NHS England said that more than 10,000 homes had been visited by staff delivering the jab in a bid to prioritise those most vulnerable to Covid-19.

Vaccinations were postponed at a small number of homes for safety reasons during a local outbreak and some residents have not received a jab for clinical reasons.

However, staff will return to those homes as soon as possible, a spokesperson for NHS England said.

Boris Johnson had pledged earlier this month that all elderly care home patients would be offered a vaccine by the end of January.

The prime minister said : "Today marks a crucial milestone in our ongoing race to vaccinate the most vulnerable against this deadly disease. We said we would prioritise and protect care home residents, and that is exactly what we have done.

"There will be difficult moments to come, and the number of cases and people in hospital remains dangerously high. But vaccines are our route out of the pandemic, and having protected 8.9 million people with a first dose so far, our rollout programme will only accelerate from here on."

NHS England's primary care director Dr Nikki Kanani said it was a "vital step further in our fight against Covid-19".

She added: "I want to thank my colleagues, and everyone involved in the vaccine rollout for their extraordinary work in recent weeks, as it is because of their tireless efforts that millions of people have already been vaccinated, including hundreds of thousands of care home residents.

"Many have had little contact with the outside world throughout the pandemic and so it has been truly humbling for all, giving them hope and importantly protection against the disease."

Fiona Carragher, a director at Alzheimer's Society, said it was "great" that the milestone had been meet but remained concerned that staff vaccination rollout "has not been nearly so effective".

"The most pressing question now is how and when can care homes restart safe, meaningful visits. Combined with PPE and testing, isn't one jab enough? If not, what else needs to be in place? Another 12-week wait is unacceptable for people dying of loneliness," she said.

"We need a swifter rollout of the second jab, as well as ensuring all staff receive it. At least 70 per cent of care home residents have dementia, and they are losing their connection to the world, fading away. We must now see a concrete plan in place to reunite families."

Liz Kendall, Labour's shadow social care minister, said the vaccine roll-out progress was “very good news” but urged the government to ensure all social care staff were protected.

She said: "It is essential that ministers now do everything possible to ensure care home staff take up their vaccines, move swiftly to vaccinate care homes for people with disabilities and crucially, home care staff who care for elderly and disabled people in their own homes.

"We are in a race against time against this awful virus and ministers must leave no stone unturned to vaccinate all social care staff within the next two weeks."

The government aims to vaccinate nearly 15 million people in high priority groups - including older adult care home residents and staff - by mid-February.

Nearly nine out of 10 people aged 80 and above, and more than three-quarters of people aged 70 and above, have now had their first jab.

Additional reporting by Press Association