(Reuters) – NHS England has invited people between the ages of 56 and 59 to book COVID-19 vaccinations next week, with letters to 850,000 people in this age group landing on Saturday and another 850,000 following to land on Monday.
“The last invitations were sent after more than eight out of 10 people aged between 65 and 69 took over the offer of a jab,” the National Health Service said in an e-mail statement on Sunday.
NHS staff have vaccinated more than 18 million people across England, which means that more than a third of the adult population has already received life jackets.
The British medical regulator said on Thursday that it would quickly monitor vaccines for coronavirus variants, adding that already authorized vaccine manufacturers would not need further lengthy clinical trials to prove that their vaccines work.
There is concern that some variants, such as those first found in South Africa and Brazil, may reduce the effectiveness of the first generation of COVID-19 vaccines, and manufacturers are looking to adapt their photos.
The accelerated process is based on the one used each year for seasonal flu vaccines, the Drug and Medicinal Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said, and would be based on solid evidence that the shots create an immune response rather than complete clinical trials.
AstraZeneca PLC, Pfizer Inc. and Moderna Inc. – the makers of the three vaccines the MHRA has approved for use so far – have all said they plan to change their photos to cope with this year’s variants.
The UK has so far offered photos taken by AstraZeneca and Pfizer.
Report by Kanishka Singh in Bengaluru; Edited by Christopher Cushing