From today people can use the National Booking Service to book their COVID-19 and flu vaccinations.
Those most at risk from winter illness – including people in care homes for older people, the clinically vulnerable, those aged 65 and over, health and social care staff and carers should have already been contacted earlier this month by their GP surgeries or other local NHS services to arrange vaccination appointments.
This year the Department of Health and Social Care has brought forward the autumn vaccine programmes as a precautionary measure, following the identification of a new Covid variant, BA.2.86. While this strain is not currently classified as a variant of concern, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has suggested that speeding up the vaccination programme will deliver greater protection, supporting those at greatest risk of severe illness and reducing the potential impact on the NHS.
