NHS England has announced that residents of older adult care home and people who are housebound have begun to receive their COVID-19 and flu vaccinations, marking the start of the winter vaccination campaigns.
From 18 September, people will be able to book their vaccinations and eligible groups may also be offered a vaccination sooner by GP surgeries or other local NHS services.
Ahead of the winter period, the NHS encourages people to get both vaccinations as soon as they can and not delay, due to the risk of the newly circulating COVID-19 variant, BA.2.86.
The adult COVID-19 and flu vaccination programme was previously set to begin in October, but was brought forward based on expert advice announced by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), following the emergence of the new COVID-19 variant.
This year, in preparation for the earlier start of the vaccination programme, more sites than ever before (3,500) are taking part in the campaign to make it as easy as possible for people to get protection.
Vaccine providers will also receive an additional payment of £10 for each COVID-19 vaccination they administer to care home residents between 11 September to 22 October 2023, as well as a separate one-off payment of £200 per care home for completed vaccine programmes by 22 October 2023.
Vaccine providers will receive an additional £5 acceleration payment for other groups that are eligible for COVID-19 vaccinations between 11 September and 31 October 2023.
NHS director of vaccinations and screening, Steve Russell said: “With concerns arising over new COVID-19 variants, it’s vital we adapt the programme and bring it forward for those most at risk.”
He added: “NHS staff have worked hard to ensure services are ready for patients to get jabbed at an earlier stage so they can get their protection as soon as possible.”
In 2022, the NHS carried out its second biggest flu vaccination campaign to date, vaccinating over 21 million adults and children, while also delivering more than 17 million COVID-19 vaccinations last winter.