Over-50s set to be invited for Covid booster and flu jab in England

Bangla Sanglap Desk: From Friday, everyone in England aged 50 or over will be able to book their Covid booster and flu jab.

It comes after last week’s warnings that Covid cases are rising and that people should avoid vulnerable friends, colleagues and relatives if they feel unwell.

Over-50s in Wales and Northern Ireland are already eligible for both jabs.

The Scottish government says that it will begin inviting 50 to 64-year-olds soon.

Who can get their Covid booster?
It was announced in August that 26 million people in England would be eligible for an autumn Covid booster.

But not everyone could book their free vaccination immediately. Up until now, the list of eligible people included:

people aged 65 or over
frontline health and social care staff
carers
anyone who is pregnant
people with health conditions that put them at a higher risk
household contacts of people with weakened immune systems
But now the final cohort in the group, people aged between 50 and 64, are being encouraged to get their jabs.

This is estimated to be about 12 million people.

The majority of these will be offered the newer bivalent vaccine which targets the original Covid-19 variant and the newer Omicron one.

But experts stress both the current and bivalent vaccines provide good protection from severe illness and hospitalisation from Covid-19.