London, Feb 13: People eligible for a COVID-19 vaccine among the over-70 most at-risk groups who haven’t yet had their jab are being urged by the National Health Service (NHS) to come forward this weekend in a renewed drive as the UK government nears its target of vaccinating the top priority groups by Monday.
Over 12 million people in England have now received jabs to protect against coronavirus and the government is expected to expand the criteria to start covering the most vulnerable within the over-65 age group.
The milestone comes as government ministers go out into the community to help counter any reluctance around vaccinations, with UK Home Secretary Priti Patel volunteering at the Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Bedford, eastern England, to spread the message among British Indians. “The vaccine is safe and will protect you and your loved ones – no matter your background,” said Patel.
Meanwhile, UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock told ‘The Daily Telegraph’ that he hoped that over time the world could be living with the deadly virus like the seasonal flu virus.
“I hope that COVID-19 will become a treatable disease by the end of the year,” Hancock told the newspaper. The minister said that new treatments will be important in “turning Covid from a pandemic that affects all of our lives into another illness that we have to live with, like we do flu”. (PTI)
