UK's autumn COVID vaccination campaign buoyed by Omicron booster nod

16/8/2022 12:13

        The United Kingdom's COVID booster campaign is set to kick off this September, after the country became the first in the world to approve an Omicron-adapted shot.
        
        Around 26 million people in Britain are estimated to be eligible for an autumn COVID-19 booster, having had at least two COVID vaccine doses already, a UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) spokesperson said.
        
        The preference is to deploy what is known as a bivalent vaccine that targets both the original virus and the Omicron variant through the autumn campaign, but that will depend on the UK health regulator (MHRA) approving such shots and the state of vaccine supplies.
        
        The UK's Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has advised boosters should be given to over-50s, individuals in clinical risk groups, frontline workers and care-home staff ahead of the winter, when respiratory viruses are typically at their peak.