Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the potential merits of reducing the length of time between provision of first and second covid-19 vaccine doses to people deemed to be clinically immunocompromised.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advise Government on which vaccines the United Kingdom should use and provide advice on prioritisation, based on their assessments.

Recent assessment of the data available shows that the first dose of both vaccines currently deployed provides substantial protection within 2-3 weeks of vaccination from severe COVID-19 disease. The second vaccine dose is important to sustain the protection and extend its duration. In the short term however, the additional impact of the second dose is likely to be modest and most of the initial protection from clinical disease is after the first dose of vaccine. The four UK Chief Medical Officers agreed with the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) that prioritising the first doses of vaccine for as many people as possible on the priority list would protect the greatest number of at-risk people in the shortest possible time.

There are currently no plans to reduce the length of time between the provision of first and second COVID-19 doses for people deemed to be clinically immunocompromised.

The JCVI will continually monitor and assess vaccine effectiveness, including the protection afforded to specific patient groups, such as immunocompromised people, on an ongoing basis. If new evidence comes to light, the JCVI will review their policy to help better protect those most at risk of COVID-19 in the UK.