It’s been nearly two years since Margaret Keenan became the first person in the world to receive an approved COVID vaccine at a clinic in Coventry on December 8, 2020. Since then, almost 13 billion doses of various COVID vaccines have been administered globally. And they are estimated to have prevented millions of deaths.
The UK government reports that nearly 54 million British people have received their first dose, almost 51 million a second dose, and more than 40 million a third dose or booster jab. Recently, the NHS launched an autumn booster campaign offering a fourth dose to more vulnerable groups.
Autumn boosters are available to people aged over 50 or with certain health conditions, as well as frontline health and social care workers, to maximise their protection ahead of winter. Of some 26 million people eligible for an autumn booster in England, more than half have now taken it up.
