UK invites locals over 30 to register for booster jabs amid Omicron surge
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Experts fear that if strict rules are not imposed, the Omicron variant may spread rapidly, considering the current doubling times
As the Omicron variant is spreading more rapidly across the country, UK’s National Health Service (NHS) has invited locals aged 30 and above to book their Covid boosters, starting from Monday.
Medical experts are worried that the number of Omicron cases will rise alarmingly in the coming few months. To avoid the spread of the vaccine and to make sure that people do not fall severely ill if infected, the medical experts have suggested locals to get their booster shot dose.
UK has nearly 7.5 million people aged between 30 and 39, out of which 3.5 million people are eligible for their dose of Covid booster from Monday, NHS reported.
Now, all eligible people have been allowed to book their booster jab after 61 days (two months) of getting their second dose.
This announcement comes as a recent report by London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine (LSHTM) — which is a part of UK government's scientific advisory group for emergencies (SAGE) — claimed that the UK could record 25,000 to 75,000 Covid deaths by April.
Experts fear that if strict rules are not imposed, the Omicron variant may spread rapidly, considering the current doubling times.
"The key point is that under a range of plausible scenarios, stringent action is needed on or before 18 December 2021 if doubling times stay at 2.5 days. Even if doubling times rise to around 5 days, stringent action is likely still needed in December," the report, seen by the Guardian, reads. "The rapid spread of Omicron means that action to limit pressures on the health system might have to come earlier than intuition suggests."