Pharmacists have criticised as “shortsighted” the government’s decision to cut the number of people in England who get a free winter flu jab, especially with Covid-19 still circulating.
Ministers have decided that people aged 50-64 and schoolchildren aged 11-15 will not be eligible to receive the vaccine on the NHS next winter as part of the new “living with Covid” strategy. The change means millions of people will have to pay for the jab privately.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) is scaling back eligibility, which was widened significantly after the pandemic struck in 2020 to help reduce the death toll from Covid.
Evidence showed that people who caught Covid and flu at the same time were twice as likely to die as those who only contracted the virus.
“It’s shortsighted to cut back on this sensible public health measure, given that no one can say for certain that we’ll be through the Covid pandemic by next winter”, said Nick Kaye, the vice-chair of the National Pharmacy Association.
Already over-stretched A&E units will come under even more strain if people get flu and need medical attention, he said. “In any event, the NHS will be under huge pressure for several years to come, and wide access to the flu vaccine helps keep people away from the hospital front door.”
The DHSC defended its reversion to offering a free jab only to the groups who were eligible pre-pandemic. These include everyone over 65, adults whose underlying illness means they are deemed at risk, pregnant women, and children aged two-10 on 31 August.
“Thanks to the success of the Covid vaccination programme and treatments available to individuals most at risk, we are now able to live with Covid and it is right that we return our other vaccination programmes such as flu back to pre-pandemic levels”, a spokesperson said.
In a letter sent by the NHS to clinicians this week, NHS England made clear that the groups eligible for free flu jabs next winter had been decided by the DHSC and Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, which advises the government.
It emphasised that “seasonal flu vaccination remains an important public health intervention and a key priority for 2022/23 to reduce morbidity, mortality and hospitalisations associated with flu at a time when the NHS and social care will be managing winter pressures, potentially including further outbreaks of Covid-19”.
Dr Layla Hannbeck, the chief executive of the Association of Independent Multiple Pharmacies, told the Telegraph: “No one has communicated to the public that the offer of flu jabs this year is going to be any different to last year. Last year, over-50s were being told they should get their jab, now the advice has changed but no one is explaining why. It’s going to cause so much confusion.”
Giulia Guerrini , the lead pharmacist at the online pharmacy Medino, called the decision “quite worrying”. She emphasised that vaccination was important because “immune systems are lower than ever due to our bodies having had a lower amount of exposure to viruses than normal over the last two years”.
The decision will save money for the heath department as GPs and pharmacists will administer millions fewer jabs. The DHSC budget is under pressure because it is unclear who will pay for health and social care workers to be tested for Covid, which will continue despite the government’s “living with Covid” approach, which includes axing free lateral flow tests from 1 April.
