Thousands more vaccinators and volunteers to assist with delivering jabs, as UK misses daily target
The NHS is to hire an extra 52,000 vaccinators and volunteers to “ramp up” its booster drive one year after the national vaccination programme became the first in the world to administer a Covid-19 jab.
The huge recruitment push comes as millions more people can book their Covid booster vaccine on Wednesday as the NHS cuts the qualifying time from six months after a second dose to three.
Boris Johnson announced eight days ago that every eligible adult in the UK should be offered a Covid booster by the end of January under plans to boost protection against the Omicron variant. “We’re going to be throwing everything at it, to ensure everyone eligible is offered a booster in just over two months,” the prime minister said.
More than a week after that announcement, the NHS is today updating its online booking system to enable every adult aged 40 and over and all those in high-risk groups to arrange their Covid booster jab to take place three months after their second dose. A row over red tape that has hampered the programme opening up more widely has also erupted between senior national staff at NHS England and the UK Health Security Agency.
