As the NHS Covid-19 vaccination programme continues to gather momentum, hundreds of thousands more are set to be invited for their first vaccine jab.
These are predominantly people who had been asked to shield earlier this month, having been identified by public health officials as being at an additional risk from Covid-19.
Public health officials identified 1.7 million people who were at a heightened risk, with around 600,000 of these people now being invited to book a slot at a vaccination centre or pharmacy service. The remainder of this group have already been offered their first jab.
A further 10 vaccination sites around England have also entered the UK network this week, to help support the largest national vaccination drive in NHS history.
Those eligible to receive their vaccine can now pick a slot at 100 large scale vaccination centres or almost 200 pharmacy services.
Across England, the NHS vaccination programme has delivered more than 15 million first doses of the jab.
Professor Stephen Powis, NHS Medical Director, said: “The NHS vaccination programme is the biggest in health service’s history and continues to go from strength to strength.
“Hard working NHS staff have already protected more than 15 million of the most vulnerable people against Covid-19 in a matter of weeks.
“However, if you have already been offered a jab, especially if you’re aged 70 or over, but have not taken it up it is not too late. Please come forward so the NHS can protect you against coronavirus immediately.”
