- Over a quarter – 13,201,811 million – of adults in the UK
vaccinated with both doses of a COVID-19 jab
- People urged to take up their second doses to maximise
protection
Over a quarter of adults in the UK have received both doses of a
COVID-19 vaccine.
Health services across the UK have now administered a total of
47,045,391 million vaccines between 8 December and 26 April,
including 33,843,580 million people with their first dose and
13,201,811 million with their second.
The milestone means one in four adults in the UK has received the
strongest possible protection against COVID-19 and it comes as
the NHS is now inviting 42 and 43 year olds to get their jab.
Health and Social Care Secretary said:
“This latest milestone is a terrific cause for celebration – over
a quarter of all adults across the UK, including those most
vulnerable to COVID-19, have now had two jabs, meaning they have
received the strongest possible protection.
“Thank you to the brilliant NHS, volunteers, local authorities,
armed forces and civil servants who continue to work tirelessly
to vaccinate people as quickly as possible.
“There is undeniable evidence that vaccines are saving lives,
significantly reducing hospitalisations and deaths. I urge all
those who are offered an appointment to get their jab and join
the millions of people who now have protection from this terrible
disease.”
The government has already hit its target of offering everybody
in cohorts 1 to 9 - those aged 50 and over, the clinically
vulnerable and health and social care workers - a first dose of
the vaccine by 15 April and remains on track to offer a jab to
all adults by the end of July.
Vaccinated people are far less likely to get COVID-19 with
symptoms. They are far less likely to get serious COVID-19, to be
admitted to hospital, or to die from it and there is growing
evidence that vaccinated people are less likely to pass the virus
to others.
Recent data from Public Health England shows vaccines are already
having a significant impact in the UK in reducing
hospitalisations and deaths, and saved more than 10,000 lives
between December and March.
Data from the ONS and Oxford University shows that COVID-19
infections fell significantly by 65% after the first dose of the
Oxford/AstraZeneca or Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines, rising further
after the second dose.
The latest vaccine effectiveness data from PHE show that in those
aged over 70, both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca
vaccines reduce the risk of getting symptomatic disease by around
60% after a single dose. This protection lasts for several weeks.
In those aged over 80, protection against hospitalisation is
around 80% and the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is 85% effective at
stopping people aged over 80 dying from COVID-19.
All vaccines being used in the UK have undergone robust clinical
trials and have met the independent Medicines and Healthcare
products Regulatory Agency’s strict standards of safety,
effectiveness and quality.
Rolling reviews are underway by the MHRA to assess the Janssen
and Novavax vaccines.
Approved vaccines are available from thousands of NHS vaccine
centres, GP practices and pharmacies. Around 98% of people live
within 10 miles of a vaccination centre in England and
vaccinations are taking place at sites including mosques,
community centres and football stadiums.
Background information
The latest UK-wide vaccination statistics are published here.
NHS England publishes vaccine statistics for England here.
PHE’s real-world data on the efficacy of COVID-19 vaccines is
available here.
JCVI’s final advice for phase 2 of the vaccination programme is
available here.
Through the government’s Vaccines Taskforce, the UK has secured
early access to 457 million doses of eight of the most promising
vaccine candidates, including:
- BioNTech/Pfizer for 40 million doses
- Oxford/AstraZeneca for 100 million doses
- Moderna for 17 million doses
- Janssen for 30 million doses
- Novavax for 60 million doses
- Valneva for 100 million doses
- GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur for 60 million doses
- CureVac for 50 million doses
To date, the government has invested over £300 million into
manufacturing a successful vaccine to enable a rapid roll out.
The UK Government is committed to supporting equitable access to
vaccines worldwide. The UK is the largest donor to the COVAX
facility, the global mechanism to help developing countries
access a coronavirus vaccine, and has committed £548 million in
UK aid to help distribute 1.3 billion doses of coronavirus
vaccines to 92 developing countries this year.
