Are YOU one of the 12million Brits missing out on a Covid booster because of NHS penny-pinching?
Daily Mail The autumn Covid vaccination campaign is now being rolled out, but will you be offered the jab, will it be effective - and how else can you protect yourself? Rachel Ellis asks the experts.
Am I eligible for the autumn Covid booster?
This autumn's booster is not being offered as widely as before - cutting the number eligible for it by a staggering 12million people, those aged 50 to 64.
Those who are being offered it are elderly care home residents; people aged 65 and over; people under 65 with health conditions such as diabetes, lung disease or kidney disease; pregnant women; frontline health and social care workers; as well as carers and people living with some one who is immunosuppressed (such as those undergoing chemotherapy).
Anyone eligible will be contacted by letter, text or phone.
The vaccination programme in England had been due to start in October to maximise protection in December and January when flu and Covid normally hit hardest.
But a new Covid variant, called BA.2.86, or Pirola, has been identified and it has a high number of mutations compared with the other circulating Omicron variants - and this suggests it might be more of a problem.
