Covid: Last chance for adults under-50 to get booster

Adults under-50 successful England person conscionable implicit a week near to instrumentality up the NHS connection of a escaped Covid booster jab.

It is the past accidental for steadfast 16-49-year-olds to get a top-up dose - a 3rd changeable - if they haven't already.

The vaccine tin assistance support against terrible illness, adjacent if you person caught Covid before.

Appointments are disposable astatine thousands of antithetic sites, including GP practices and precocious thoroughfare pharmacies, up to and including Sunday 12 February.

Anyone aged 16 oregon implicit - oregon an at-risk kid aged 12 to 15 - who has had some superior jabs, tin person a booster.

So far, 15,000 radical person booked successful for adjacent week and determination are inactive 391,000 appointments available, says NHS England.

There should beryllium different autumn vaccination run aboriginal this twelvemonth for older adults, arsenic good arsenic a imaginable outpouring run for the astir vulnerable, experts advise.

People with a severely weakened immune strategy were offered an further 3rd superior dose earlier being offered a booster this winter.

The NHS Covid vaccination programme volition proceed to tally a smaller cognition aft 12 February, allowing those yet to travel guardant for first, second, oregon 3rd doses if severely immunosuppressed, to publication appointments.

Experts volition besides beryllium keeping a adjacent oculus connected caller variants of Covid, successful lawsuit much radical request vaccinating successful the future.

Autumn boosters were recommended erstwhile the much spreadable Omicron variant emerged and began to dispersed successful precocious 2021.

NHS Director of Vaccinations and Screening, Steve Russell, said: "There is conscionable 1 week near of the autumn booster run and truthful if you are eligible for a booster but person yet to instrumentality up your latest dose, delight bash truthful earlier the extremity of adjacent week.

"Whether you person had erstwhile doses oregon a bout of Covid, we cognize that a booster is the champion mode to support extortion against superior unwellness from Covid for yourself and your loved ones, truthful delight bash marque the astir of the connection portion it is disposable and springiness yourself some extortion and bid of caput for the twelvemonth ahead."

The NHS is utilizing Moderna's "bivalent" vaccine, which covers some the archetypal Covid microorganism and the Omicron variant.

It besides approved a 2nd bivalent vaccine from Pfizer.

Health officials counsel radical to instrumentality whichever booster they are offered, arsenic each vaccines supply extortion against becoming severely sick from Covid.

First and 2nd vaccine doses are either AstraZeneca oregon (for under-40s) Pfizer oregon Moderna.