Delays to the flu vaccine rollout will cause “chaos” and put vulnerable people at risk ahead of a difficult winter, GPs have warned.
The NHS announced this week that the annual campaign will start in October – a month later than planned – to coincide with the rollout of Covid booster jabs.
But the move has sparked a row between union leaders and the NHS, with GP practices warning the delay means they will be forced to cancel thousands of vaccine clinic appointments already booked for September.
NHS England has argued the delay will “maximise protection” by allowing flu and Covid vaccines to be given to patients at the same time.
Responding to the delay, Dr Elliott Singer, medical director for the Londonwide Local Medical Committees, which represent all GP practices in the capital, said the move “throws into chaos a winter flu jab campaign” ahead of what is predicted to be an incredibly difficult winter for the NHS and vulnerable patients.
He said: “NHS guidance says that flu vaccinations should be administered as soon as possible this autumn and many practices are ready to start this month. Delaying this to overhaul how these clinics run and wait for Covid vaccine stock puts vulnerable patients at risk.
“Practices face the choice of making sweeping changes to be in a position to hold and deliver Covid vaccines, or cancelling their flu clinics while they wait for Covid stock to arrive. This is bad for patients who want flu jabs from their local GP, and bad for patients who want their local practice team to be able to focus on delivering appointments rather than rushing around in response to this last-minute upheaval.”
The announcement came as the government’s Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation advised that Covid-19 jabs would now only be given to those aged over 65s in a departure from guidance last year which gave access to all those over 50.
NHS England has told GP practices that to “maximise” protection, they should try to give adults both flu and Covid vaccines together from October.
The money GPs get for administering Covid jabs was also slashed from £10.06 to £7.54 – a move criticised by the British Medical Association (BMA), which said practices would find it difficult to deliver them at the reduced fee.
The NHS says delivering both flu and Covid vaccines together will maximise protection for people— (PA)
One GP practice leader told The Independent the campaign changes would “wreck general practice vaccinations”.
They said: “By shoving [flu jabs] to October they start to hit the higher demand that October brings. There’s a good reason flu vaccinations are prioritised in September, it’s because that’s the last quieter summer month to get the most vulnerable.
“October is right into flu season when the vulnerable may be caught before they get vaccinated.”
In a message from the BMA to GP practices, seen by The Independent, doctors were told the organisation would soon release guidance on the issue, warning: “Practices must be allowed to start our flu campaigns as soon as we receive them in our fridges.
“We are aware of increasing numbers of [integrated care boards] pressurising [primary care networks] to defer flu start dates into October. They can’t do that and we’ll explain why.
“We suspect they are doing this because they know the Covid fee is totally inadequate, and they think there is a better chance of us doing the Covid jabs if they say it is all starting from 1 Oct…”
An NHS spokesperson said: “The NHS flu vaccination programme will begin in October based on the latest clinical evidence – it will maximise protection for patients right across the winter months when it is typically colder, and viruses are more likely to spread with people spending more time indoors.
“The NHS is working to ensure a growing number of vaccine sites across England offer both flu and Covid-19 vaccines in the same visit, to make it as convenient as possible for people to get life-saving protection from both viruses ahead of winter.”
