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Covid booster: Who can get another jab this spring? Covid booster: Who can get another jab this autumn?
(about 1 month later)
Those most at risk from coronavirus will be offered another vaccination this spring. Covid vaccine rules are changing, but those most at risk will be offered another jab this autumn.
Across the UK, more than 151 million Covid vaccine doses have been given. However, unlike in 2022, boosters will not be offered to healthy 50 to 64-year-olds, following advice from UK immunisation experts.
Who can have a spring booster? Who can have an autumn Covid booster?
The government has confirmed an extra booster vaccine dose will be offered to: At the moment you can still only get the Covid vaccine via the NHS.
adults aged 75 years and over The government has confirmed which groups will be entitled to an autumn booster:
residents in a care home for older adults Residents in a care home for older adults
individuals aged five and over who are immunosuppressed All adults aged 65 years and over
Those eligible will be offered the vaccine about six months after their previous dose. People aged six months to 64 years in a clinical risk group
Scotland's booster campaign will begin in the final week of March. Frontline health and social care workers
Vaccinations in England and Wales will start in early April, with Northern Ireland's rollout from mid-April. People aged 12 to 64 who are household contacts of people with weakened immune systems
People at higher risk from Covid are also expected to be offered a further booster vaccine dose in autumn 2023. People aged 16 to 64 who are carers and staff working in care homes for older adults
Covid booster jab to be offered this spring In autumn 2022, all over-50s were offered an extra dose, but the government's advisers on vaccines recommended that only over-65s should automatically be included this year.
Covid-19 in the UK The NHS will contact those who are eligible.
Who was able to get an autumn booster? The roll-out has been brought forward in England, because of a new Covid variant, BA.2.86, which was first detected in the UK on 18 August.
This was offered to a wider range of people: Boosters will be given from 11 September, so that as many people as possible are jabbed by 31 October.
people aged 50 and over As before, anyone also eligible for a free flu jab may receive it at the same time. You can check if you qualify on the NHS website.
those aged five to 49 with health conditions that put them at higher risk - including pregnant women Covid has not gone away warn health bosses
care home staff What we know about the new Covid sub-variant EG.5
front-line health and social care workers
carers aged 16 to 49
household contacts of people with weakened immune systems
Anyone aged 16 or over - or an at-risk child aged 12 to 15 - who had received both primary jabs could have a booster.
People with a severely weakened immune system were offered an additional third primary dose before being offered a booster.
A free flu jab was also available to more people this winter - sometimes given at the same time as a Covid booster.
Which vaccine will people get?Which vaccine will people get?
Four different vaccines, made by Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Sanofi/GSK and Novavax are expected to be used in the spring booster programme. Approval has recently been granted in the UK for a new Pfizer jab that targets the Omicron subvariant XBB 1.5.
Most doses should protect against the Omicron variant as well as previous ones. Four different vaccines are in use across the UK: Pfizer-BioNTech, Moderna, Sanofi/GSK and Novavax.
Under-12s will be offered a children's formulation of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. All of them help to improve protection from earlier doses of the vaccine and give longer-term protection against getting seriously ill from Covid-19.
Health officials advise people to take whichever booster they are offered, as all vaccines provide protection against becoming severely ill or dying from Covid. Most people can have any of them, but those who are pregnant, under 18 or over 75, will be offered a particular jab.
First and second vaccine doses are either AstraZeneca or (for under-40s) Pfizer or Moderna. If you are not in one of those categories, you cannot choose the vaccine you get.
How many people have been vaccinated against Covid? People are advised to take whichever they are offered, as all protect against severe illness or death.
According to the official figures, more than 151 million Covid vaccine doses had been administered in the UK as at 4 September, including: Covid vaccine safety - What we know
53.8 million people had a first dose (94% of over-12s) How long after having Covid can I have a jab?
50.8 million had a second dose (88%)
40.4 million had a booster or third dose (70%)
The 2022/2023 winter's Covid booster vaccination programme reached more than 18.7 million people across the UK:
15.1 million people in England (as at 28 February)
2 million people in Scotland (as at 2 March)
1.1 million people in Wales (as at 6 March)
500,000 people in Northern Ireland (as at 7 March)
In England, the figure equates to almost two-thirds of over-50s (65%).
In July 2022, a report from an influential committee of MPs warned that Covid vaccine take-up was too low for several important groups, including pregnant women, younger people and those from some ethnic backgrounds.
Some pregnant women complained they were not given enough information about the Covid jab
Which children can get jabbed?
All five to 11-year-olds in the UK can have two doses of a reduced-strength Covid vaccine, 12 weeks apart.
In addition:
all 12 to 15-year-olds are offered two doses of Pfizer
all 16 and 17-year-olds can have a booster, three months after their second jab
12 to 15-year-olds in an at-risk group - or who live with someone with a weakened immune system - can have a booster
How do I book my Covid vaccine?
The NHS will contact people who are eligible for a spring booster dose.
In England: You can book all doses online, by calling 119, or you can visit a walk-in clinic (some don't offer jabs to under-12s)
In Scotland: Over-16s can register for their first dose and book second or booster doses online, or by calling 0800 030 8013
In Wales: Over-16s will be invited for their booster. If you have not been invited - or you have not had your first two doses - you can contact your health board. You can change or cancel existing appointments online
In Northern Ireland: All doses can be booked online or by calling 0300 200 7813
Carers of five to 11-year-olds in Scotland and Wales should wait to be offered an appointment.
Twelve to 15-year-olds in Scotland and Wales should also be contacted directly, but can speak to the relevant helpline or local health board if not.
You should leave eight weeks between your first and second dose, and at least 12 weeks before having a booster.
The 2023 spring booster should be given six months after your last dose.
How long after Covid can I have a jab?
You should wait four weeks after a positive test, even if you had no symptoms.You should wait four weeks after a positive test, even if you had no symptoms.
Under-18s, who are not at higher risk from Covid, should wait 12 weeks. Those who are more vulnerable should wait four.
You should not have a jab if you have a severe illness or high fever.You should not have a jab if you have a severe illness or high fever.
The vaccines do not infect you with Covid and cannot cause positive test results. The vaccines do not infect people with Covid and cannot cause positive test results.
Do I need to isolate if I have Covid? How many people have been vaccinated against Covid?
How to look after yourself if you get Covid Across the UK, by May 2023, nearly 176 million Covid vaccines had been given.
What are the side effects? About 88% of people in the UK over the age of 12 (58 million) are thought to have had both a first and second dose of a vaccine, with 93% receiving a single jab.
The most common side effects include a sore arm, headache, chills, fatigue and nausea. A small number of people aged five to 11 (fewer than one million as of September 2022) had received a first and second dose of a coronavirus jab.
They are part of the body's normal immune response to vaccines and tend to resolve themselves within a day or two. These numbers are based on the Office for National Statistics mid-year population estimates for 2021, and vaccine data from up to 7 May in Scotland and 5 May for the other UK nations.
In July 2022, a report from an influential committee of MPs warned that Covid vaccine take-up had been too low for several important groups, including pregnant women, younger people and those from some ethnic backgrounds.
How are the rules changing about who can get the Covid vaccine?
At the moment, primary vaccine doses are only available to children aged between six months and four years, who are at increased risk from Covid.
From autumn 2023, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has said only one jab will be needed to provide primary protection. Only people in the categories which are entitled to the autumn 2023 booster will be eligible for primary vaccination.
People with weakened immune systems may be entitled to additional doses.
NHS England: Covid vaccination
NHS Scotland: Covid vaccination
Public Health Wales: Covid vaccination
NI Direct: Covid vaccination
What are the side effects of the Covid vaccine?
For most people side effects are mild. The most common include a sore arm, headache, chills, fatigue and nausea.
They are part of the body's normal immune response to vaccination, and tend to resolve within a day or two.
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Why it is normal for some people to experience short-term side effects from Covid-19 vaccinesWhy it is normal for some people to experience short-term side effects from Covid-19 vaccines
Why it is normal for some people to experience short-term side effects from Covid-19 vaccinesWhy it is normal for some people to experience short-term side effects from Covid-19 vaccines
There are extremely rare, but occasionally fatal, cases of people developing blood clots after taking the AstraZeneca vaccine. Very rarely myocarditis - inflammation of the heart muscle - has been linked to the Moderna and Pfizer vaccines.
It has also been listed as a rare possible side effect of the Novavax vaccine, after a very small number of cases were reported during clinical trials.
There have also been extremely rare, but occasionally fatal, cases of people developing blood clots after taking the AstraZeneca vaccine.
A very small number of people have experienced a severe allergic reaction after the Pfizer vaccine.A very small number of people have experienced a severe allergic reaction after the Pfizer vaccine.
You should discuss any existing serious allergies with your healthcare professional before being vaccinated. Patients with serious allergies should talk to their healthcare professional before being vaccinated.
What misinformation is there about Covid vaccines?
False and misleading claims about Covid vaccines have circulated online since they were first introduced. Most wrongly argue the jabs are not safe.
A number of social media accounts with lots of followers regularly misrepresent real stats and studies to do this.
Former Conservative MP Andrew Bridgen was expelled from the party after comparing the side effects of Covid vaccines to the Holocaust and breaching lobbying rules.
However, for most people, the evidence shows that the benefits of vaccination significantly outweigh the risks.
In fact, you are more likely to develop serious conditions including myocarditis from having Covid than from getting the vaccine.
Studies confirm young people do not have an increased risk of other heart problems after taking the vaccine.
Others strands of disinformation wrongly suggest that negative things which have happened to people after they were vaccinated were caused by the injection.
Died Suddenly, a film from far-right US radio DJ Stew Peters, which promotes anti-vaccine conspiracy theories, has been found to drive harassment of bereaved families in the US, the UK and Ireland.
Elon Musk tweet boosts vaccine conspiracies
'My wife died suddenly - trolls blamed vaccines'
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