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Readers expressed frustration and disbelief over the government\u2019s decision to restrict free Covid<\/a> booster jabs to a smaller group of people, describing the move as \u201ca national scandal\u201d. <\/p>\n Many shared stories of being denied the vaccine<\/a> despite chronic or respiratory illnesses, saying the policy risks leaving vulnerable people like Ella Halpern-Matthews \u2013 who has caught Covid three times since losing eligibility<\/a> \u2013 without adequate protection.<\/p>\n Several said they had been forced to pay privately for the jab, effectively creating what they saw as a two-tier health system. <\/p>\n One reader remarked that it felt \u201cas if the NHS<\/a> would rather pay the hospital bill than for a cheap jab\u201d, while others highlighted the inconsistency of vaccinating care home<\/a> residents but not staff, and the false economy of cutting the rollout.<\/p>\n Some questioned why countries such as France and Germany continue to offer free or low-cost boosters to wider groups, while the UK \u201cquietly withdrew\u201d access.<\/p>\n Overall, readers urged the government to review eligibility urgently \u2013 calling for clearer communication, fairer access, and stronger protection for those still at risk.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s what you had to say:<\/p>\n Not classified in a risk group<\/p>\n It’s terrible that people with health issues related to the lungs are not classified in a “risk group”, whatever their age or circumstances.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, it shows once again how inefficient the screening and health coordination is in the UK.<\/p>\n LeeisBlue<\/a><\/p>\n The criteria need to be revised<\/p>\n My wife and I are 69. We both got Covid in 2021. She was ill for five days; I was ill for three months. Since then I am generally short of breath, catch every cold in circulation, have a nagging cough throughout the winter, and have to avoid my grandchildren for fear of what they might be carrying.<\/p>\n Following a chest X-ray I was told my lungs were OK, but clearly I have a problem, despite people belittling it as \u201cman flu\u201d.<\/p>\n We are no longer eligible for the free Covid vaccine, but fortunately we could afford for me to get one privately. My wife did not get one. Clearly, the criteria need to be revised.<\/p>\n Steve56<\/a><\/p>\n Thousands turned away<\/p>\n I’ve spoken to a pharmacist about this, and even she said that it’s crazy how small the list has dropped for those eligible this year for a Covid jab.<\/p>\n Regarding the immunosuppressed: if you have asthma and take steroid inhalers, you’re not eligible \u2013 but if you have asthma and take steroid tablets, then you are.<\/p>\n Thousands of people are turning up at pharmacies that have booked their appointments online and are then being turned away.<\/p>\n This isn’t the pharmacies\u2019 fault. If they jab an NHS patient that doesn’t fall into the correct category, then they don’t get paid.<\/p>\n If the powers that be wish to see fewer people being admitted to hospital and adding further to the NHS\u2019s winter crisis, then they need to re-expand their eligibility list.<\/p>\n Amy<\/a><\/p>\n Our solution was to pay<\/p>\n I am immunosuppressed and get the jab. My wife is 72, and as she is not immunosuppressed she doesn’t get the jab. This is a worry because if she gets Covid, there’s a good chance I will too, as the jab isn’t 100 per cent effective. Our solution was to pay for her to have the jab privately at a High Street chemist \u2013 although it is expensive at almost \u00a3100.<\/p>\n Tewel<\/a><\/p>\n The 2025 strain is very nasty<\/p>\n My wife and I are both in the 65\u201374 group; we got jabs last year but not this year. This year we both got Covid again.<\/p>\n It’s not life-threatening, and I guess we have some acquired immunity by now, but the 2025 strain is very nasty and debilitating, and I’m not sure there are no lasting \u201clong Covid\u201d effects where we might be at risk.<\/p>\n We enquired about private jabs, but they are about \u00a3150.<\/p>\n SteveHill<\/a><\/p>\n Stop ridiculous prescriptions<\/p>\n Yet the NHS will find the money for minor, self-limiting conditions that are available in nearly every shop and garage. In one year alone, \u00a380m worth of prescriptions were written for paracetamol, which can be bought for as little as 19p in a supermarket! That \u00a380m could easily fund Covid booster jabs for at least two or three other high-risk groups \u2013 people like this lady, who are at much more serious risk of acute illness from a coronavirus hammering their already damaged immune system.<\/p>\n Wes Streeting, if you are reading this, here\u2019s a clear argument and a clear cost saving. Stop ridiculous paracetamol funding \u2013 we can all afford a packet or three out of our own pockets \u2013 and spend the money on more pressing high-risk groups. Just do it, now!<\/p>\n Moo100<\/a><\/p>\n A protective bubble around care homes<\/p>\n It’s disgraceful that free Covid jabs have been removed from health workers, like people who work in care homes. It’s not enough to vaccinate care home residents \u2013 you need to put up a protective bubble around them as well, which means vaccinating all the staff the residents might come in contact with.<\/p>\n WellActually<\/a><\/p>\n The real scandal<\/p>\n Here in Northern Ireland, only those over 75 are eligible. I’m 73 and my wife is 71, and we plan to pay for vaccination. We’ve had our annual flu vaccine and she had a bit of a reaction, as she usually does, otherwise we’d have had our Covid vaccine already.<\/p>\n For me, the real scandal is that NHS staff here can no longer get the Covid jab unless they pay for it.<\/p>\n Zandeman<\/a><\/p>\n It\u2019s as if the NHS would rather pay the hospital bill<\/p>\n I am a man with chronic lung issues going back to severe whooping cough as an infant. Add to that bronchiectasis, COPD, etc., and the NHS doesn\u2019t give a stuff! <\/p>\n I’ve had Covid twice in the last year, and only because of having a BMI over 40 is there a chance I might get my Covid jab tomorrow. I expect that chance to be an argument with the chemist.<\/p>\n It’s as if the NHS would rather pay the inpatient hospital bill than for a cheap jab for me!<\/p>\n SpendThrifty<\/a><\/p>\n Why can\u2019t the UK offer the jab?<\/p>\n Poland is offering the Covid vaccination free to anyone who wants it (although you don’t get a choice \u2013 this year it’s Moderna) and I think you can pay for others in a pharmacy if you want. As uptake is typically low, if you make an appointment online you’re pretty much guaranteed to get one. They also do flu jabs at the same time (these cost about \u20ac5). Why the UK can’t offer the Covid jab is beyond me, especially as there seem to be no mitigations anywhere \u2013 no air purifiers, no mask wearing.<\/p>\n felix the cat<\/a><\/p>\n A national scandal<\/p>\n Why has there been so little noise about the quiet withdrawal of the Covid vaccine for most people who used to be eligible?<\/p>\n It\u2019s utterly astonishing. This autumn, the NHS is offering the free jab only to people 75 and over, care home residents, and the immunosuppressed. Everyone else, including many in their 60s with clear risk factors, has been quietly dropped.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, across Europe, countries like France, Germany and Ireland are still offering boosters to those 60+ and to a much wider range of health-risk groups. Even some of the smaller or poorer EU states have broader access. Britain is again an outlier.<\/p>\n I was charged nearly \u00a3100 a dose for the vaccine, when in France you can walk into a pharmacy and get vaccinated for about \u20ac10 or even free if you\u2019re in a priority group.<\/p>\n The lack of coverage of this is remarkable. Has the BBC even covered it properly? You\u2019d think a national rollback of vaccine access would be headline news. Yet soon, no doubt, we\u2019ll be told the NHS is under winter pressure again. In my judgement this is actually a national scandal \u2013 yet there is little but public apathy.<\/p>\n Musil<\/a><\/p>\n Paying for healthcare will become normal<\/p>\n Definitely worth paying \u00a390 for the vaccine \u2013 not ideal, but certainly worth the investment for your health.<\/p>\n Unfortunately, paying for healthcare just isn’t the done thing here in the UK, but as the NHS evolves (worsens), it will become something most people will have to accept.<\/p>\n ChrisMatthews<\/a><\/p>\n Let them show their workings<\/p>\n The change in the rules of eligibility was sneaked in rather than justified with some stats to show that those now excluded are not at substantially greater risk. As things stand, you now get excluded as a 74-year-old with COPD, even though last year you would have been protected. If the government is satisfied that this is a rational decision, then let them show their workings.<\/p>\n Simplesimon<\/a><\/p>\n I feel guilty<\/p>\n I’m 61, with a dozen health conditions, and am immunosuppressed. I was lucky to get my Covid jab, but I feel guilty when others are denied the jab. Surely this could have been thought out better?<\/p>\n AshTree<\/a><\/p>\n Some of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.<\/p>\n Want to share your views<\/a>? Simply register your details below. Once registered, you can comment on the day\u2019s top stories for a chance to be featured. Alternatively, click \u2018log in\u2019 or \u2018register\u2019 in the top right corner to sign in or sign up.<\/p>\n Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines<\/a>, which can be found here<\/a>. For a full guide on how to comment click here.<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Your support helps us to tell the story From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":241876,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[43],"tags":[102,2960,56,54,55],"class_list":{"0":"post-241875","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-healthcare","8":"tag-health","9":"tag-healthcare","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-unitedkingdom"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241875","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=241875"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/241875\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/241876"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=241875"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=241875"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=241875"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}