GPs are to earn an extra £10 for every care home resident they are able to vaccinate against Covid by the end of January in an accelerated drive by the NHS to protect the most vulnerable.
The additional funding for GPs to prioritise them is expected to see the majority of care home residents vaccinated by the end of January and all those who have not had the jab are expected to have an appointment by then.
As the regulators and the chief medical officers have now specified more flexibility on timing of second doses, this also means that more first doses of vaccines should be available for the NHS in January than in December.
The number of vaccination sites are coming on line all the time with more than 700, a mixture of GP-run centres and hospital hubs, now delivering jabs across the country.
The NHS vaccination programme is being expanded after regulators approved the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine on 30 December.
The Oxford/AstraZeneca jab can be kept at fridge temperature and transported more easily than the Pfizer, making it easier to get to care home residents.
“Three quarters of a million people have now received the Pfizer vaccine thanks to the tireless efforts of NHS staff who have given up time with their families over Christmas to deliver vaccines at the same times as treating record numbers of seriously-ill patients with Covid-19,” said NHS medical director for primary care Dr Nikki Kanani.
“As we head into the New Year with a second vaccine that is also more versatile we will be able to expand the programme and ensure that the majority of care home residents are protected within the next four weeks or so.
“It is also great news that we will be able to begin vaccinating NHS staff serving on the frontline to protect them against coronavirus.”
Priority groups for vaccination in this initial phase were determined by the government following advice from the JCVI and were people aged 80 and over, as well as care home residents and staff.
