NHS chief earmarks summer for return to normality January 26, 2021 NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens has signalled that the UK could begin to see a return to normality by the summer if plans to ramp up the nation’s vaccination programme go to plan. Teachers and police could be fast-tracked for the Covid vaccine as early as mid-February, the NHS boss said. Ministers have set [...]
Exclusive: Test and Trace slammed for tweaking counting method to boost stats January 26, 2021 The Government’s Covid-19 Test and Trace programme has come under sharp criticism for tweaking its method of counting coronavirus contacts to boost figures. The beleaguered contact tracing system last week changed its methodology so that Covid-19 contacts can be counted multiple times, City A.M. can reveal. Previously, people who had been in contact with any [...]
Exclusive: NHS drops ‘mass vaccination centre’ term over scare-mongering concerns January 25, 2021 The NHS has dropped the term “mass vaccination centre” to describe its large-scale vaccine hubs over fears it will alienate the public. NHS England will instead describe its 50 major vaccine hubs as “NHS vaccine centres”, City A.M. can reveal. A spokesperson for NHS England said the shift was to avoid members of the public [...]
Matt Hancock announces ‘enhanced contact tracing’ for Covid mutation infections January 25, 2021 The UK has launched an “enhanced” contact tracing system for people infected with any of the new coronavirus variants, Matt Hancock announced today. All those found infected with the South African coronavirus variant in UK have been subject to enhanced scrutiny, the health secretary announced, as Britain attempts to curb the spread of new mutations. [...]
Moderna to trial new Covid vaccine for South African mutation January 25, 2021 Moderna is set to trial its new Covid-19 vaccine specially designed to tackle a new coronavirus strain that first emerged in South Africa, the company announced today. The US pharmaceutical firm said laboratory tests showed its current vaccine appears to work against the UK Covid variant first identified in Kent. However, it warned that the [...]
Four new vaccination centres open in London as Covid rates fall January 25, 2021 Four major new vaccination centres have opened in London today, as the capital ups its vaccine programme alongside a decline in coronavirus cases. A large-scale vaccination centre at the Francis Crick Institute in central London will open its doors today for frontline healthcare staff, before welcoming the over-80s and at-risk individuals from tomorrow. The centre [...]
Men in low-skilled jobs had highest Covid death rate last year January 25, 2021 Men in low-skilled jobs had the highest rate of death from Covid among workers in England and Wales last year, according to the latest official figures. There were 7,961 coronavirus-related deaths registered among the working age population — aged 20 to 64 years — between 9 March and 28 December last year, according to data [...]
Astrazeneca delays vaccine delivery to EU by ’60 per cent’ January 22, 2021 Astrazeneca will slash the supply of it Covid vaccine to the EU by 60 per cent in first quarter, according to reports. The company was expected to deliver to the 27 EU countries around 80m doses by the end of March, but will now only be able to deliver 31m doses, Reuters reported. It comes [...]
Coronavirus: UK R rate falls to between 0.8 and 1 January 22, 2021 The UK’s R rate has dropped sharply to a best estimate of between 0.8 and 1, according to latest official data, suggesting lockdown restrictions across the four nations are beginning to make their mark. The figure marks a significant fall from last week’s rate of reproduction of the virus, which was estimated to be somewhere [...]
London sees biggest drop in Covid case rate as capital stays indoors January 21, 2021 London has reported the biggest drop in Covid case rates among English regions, as scientists’ warnings that hospitalis may soon be overwhelmed reverberate around the capital. The average number of infections in London fell to around 630 per 100,000 people last week, according to the latest official figures — down from 865 in the first [...]