Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he plans to take steps to help ensure that pregnant women of all ages have access to covid-19 booster vaccinations.

On 29 November, the Government accepted advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation to extend the COVID-19 booster programme to all people aged 18 to 39 years old, including pregnant women. The interval between second and booster dose has been reduced from six to three months. Eligible pregnant women will be invited for their booster vaccination with others in their age group.

NHS England and NHS Improvement have urged all healthcare professionals to raise awareness of the vaccine’s benefits among pregnant women, reassure any concerns and encourage them to book their booster dose, through contacts in maternity and primary care services. A toolkit has been launched to support healthcare professionals with conversations with pregnant women, including key messages, facts and frequently asked questions.