More than 5 million people in the UK receive their second dose of a coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine
Nearly 1 in 10 UK adults have now received both doses
Government urges people to take up their second doses as soon as possible to maximise protection
More than 5 million people in the UK have received their second dose of a coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine.
Health services across the UK have now administered over 36.6 million vaccines between 8 December and 02 April, including over 31.4 million people with their first dose and over 5.2 million with their second.
The milestone means nearly 1 in 10 of all UK adults have received both vaccines, ensuring maximum protection from the virus over the coming months.
Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:
Our spectacular vaccination programme has now delivered over 5 million second doses, giving those most vulnerable to COVID - including half of all those aged over 80 - the best possible protection. This is vital so everyone can get the strongest possible protection against COVID-19 as we progress along the road to freedom, allowing us to reclaim the things we love. I want to give a big thank you to all those who have helped us reach this milestone.
The UK remains on track to achieve the Prime Minister’s target of offering a first dose to those aged 50 and over by mid-April, as well as all adults by the end of July.
Minister for COVID-19 Vaccine Deployment Nadhim Zahawi said:
Vaccines are an incredibly important part of our route out of lockdown and this pandemic, and it’s vital people take advantage of the protection they provide. No matter who you are, where you live, your race or your religion, I encourage everyone to take up both their vaccinations when offered and help this country get back to normality.
Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and medical director for primary care at NHS England, said:
The biggest vaccination programme in NHS history – the fastest in Europe – reaches another significant milestone as more than 5 million people have now received their second dose providing them with the strongest possible protection from serious disease. This success is testament to the tens of thousands of volunteers, everyone working behind the scenes and NHS GPs, nurses and vaccinators who are continuing to offer vaccines to all those who are eligible so please do come forward for your second dose when called.
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.
The Moderna vaccine has also been approved by the MHRA and will be deployed from the Spring. The MHRA are also assessing the Janssen and Novavax vaccines.
Data from the Public Health England ( PHE ) real-world study shows that both the Pfizer/BioNTech and Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccines are highly effective in reducing coronavirus (COVID-19) among older people aged 70 years and over.
The country is already seeing a significant impact from the vaccination programme on reducing hospitalisations and deaths, with at least 6,100 deaths prevented in those aged 70 and older in England up to the end of February.
The vaccines are available free of charge and are available from thousands of vaccine centres, GP practices and pharmacies, and we want everyone to take up the offer of an appointment when they are invited - all those 50 and over can book a jab now. Around 98% of people live within 10 miles of a vaccination centre in England, which includes sites such as mosques, Westminster Abbey and football stadiums.
Background information
Public Health England’s real-world data on the efficacy of coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccines is available here. Data on the number of deaths prevented by vaccines available here.
Through the government’s Vaccines Taskforce, the UK has secured early access to 457 million doses of 8 of the most promising vaccine candidates, including:
BioNTech/Pfizer for 40 million doses
Oxford/AstraZeneca for 100 million doses
Moderna for 17 million doses
GlaxoSmithKline and Sanofi Pasteur for 60 million doses
Novavax for 60 million doses
Janssen for 30 million doses
Valneva for 100 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.
No dia 25 de março passado, o Ministério da Saúde do Reino Unido divulgou um comunicado sobre uma análise realizada pela ''Public Health England'' (PHE) que sugere que o programa de vacinação contra  evitou 6.100 mortes em pessoas com 70 anos ou mais na Inglaterra até o final de fevereiro de 2021.

De 8 de dezembro de 2020 até o final de janeiro de 2021, mais de 4 milhões de doses de vacina haviam sido aplicadas em adultos com 70 anos ou mais. A análise comparou o número de mortes observadas com o número de mortes que seria esperado, se a vacina não tivesse sido aplicada durante este período de tempo. 

Para dar o tempo necessário para o desenvolvimento uma resposta do sistema imunológico à imunização, a análise presumiu que levaria 31 dias antes que o efeito da vacinação nas mortes fosse observado. Usando este método, o PHE estimou que cerca de 6.100 mortes foram evitadas até o final de fevereiro - 5.900 nas pessoas com 80 anos ou mais e 200 nas pessoas com 70 a 79 anos.

Os resultados são muito semelhantes aos estimados pela ''Warwick University'' (também publicados no dia 25 de março), que usou uma abordagem diferente para estimar o número de mortes com e sem o programa de vacinação. A estimativa da ''Warwick University'' sugere que o programa evitou cerca de 6.600 mortes em todas as faixas etárias.

'''Novas vacinas a caminho'''

A vacina da  também foi aprovada pelo MHRA, a agência reguladora local, e começará a ser utilizada ainda nesta primavera. A MHRA também está avaliando as vacinas da  e da .

Dados de um estudo da Public Health England (PHE) mostram que as vacinas -BioNTech e Oxford- são altamente eficazes na redução de casos de covid-19 em idosos a partir dos 70 anos de idade.