news

"The health impact of a Covid infection was higher than the risks from the vaccine for teens and children - but it won't settle arguments over current vaccine policy.

The Covid vaccine caused a rare side effect of heart inflammation in children and teenagers, but this was outweighed by the risks of catching the virus itself.

Getting vaccinated led to a rise in the number of under-18s with heart inflammation, also called myocarditis, in the first two weeks, but numbers quickly dropped over the next few months, a study has found.

In teenagers and children who caught Covid, there were higher risks of myocarditis, blood clots and a rare whole-body inflammation syndrome for several months after the infection."

"Private providers are not licensed to give the vaccine to children under 12, prompting some desperate parents to make the costly journey abroad.

Families are spending thousands of pounds travelling abroad to vaccinate their children against Covid because of significant changes to who is eligible for jabs on the NHS.

Ministers face mounting pressure to U-turn and expand the eligibility criteria so that clinically vulnerable children and adults under 75 can receive the jab for free.
The Government decision to restrict access to the jabs – following advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) – has pushed more people to pay up to £100 for the vaccine privately in the UK."

"Ministers are under pressure to U-turn on the decision to limit access to the Covid vaccine over fears it is creating a two-tier healthcare system as demand for private jabs soars.

Research suggests that mRNA Covid jabs could improve cancer outcomes, with experts suggesting further discoveries could be jeopardised with the rollback of the NHS vaccine programme.

It is understood that some 13 million people who were eligible for a booster in autumn 2024 can no longer get the jab for free via the NHS following a significant change to eligibility criteria."

"Serren, who had only just turned 13 when the first Covid lockdown began, faced harassment and abuse from her fellow students and their parents because of her decision to wear a face covering and keep classroom windows open.

From Bangor, Northern Ireland, Serren’s younger sister has multiple disabilities and is clinically vulnerable, while her father’s cancer left him with a disability that weakened his immune system.

The bullying lasted for three years and forced her to leave school halfway through her A-levels, as well as losing contact with friends who had distanced themselves."

"A man living with Motor Neurone Disease (MND) has said he was shocked to find he was no longer eligible for a Covid vaccination.

David Setters, 68, from Redhill, was diagnosed with MND a decade ago and uses a ventilator at night.

Mr Setters said that after the NHS decision that MND patients no longer qualified, patients were "being turned away" from their GP and directed to a pharmacy where the vaccine costs about £100."

"Lana Collie-James was 14 years old in the midst of the Covid pandemic when she was offered a stark choice: her education or her mother’s life. “My mum’s clinically vulnerable. She has a compromised immune system, along with a plethora of other illnesses that would make Covid hit very hard,” she says.

It meant when schools reopened to pupils after the initial closures, the single mother and her daughter living together in Bournemouth faced a wrenching decision."

"As I wrote on Monday, the UK Health Security Agency, on the guidance of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation has decided that only those who are over 75, immunosuppressed or living in care will receive a COVID booster vaccination in September and October.

This means that a huge chunk of people will be unprotected, including disabled people with chronic and autoimmune conditions, pregnant people and even those between the ages of 65-74, who were previously seen as more susceptible too. Vulnerable people will also be put at further risk as carers or those living in the same house as them are also not eligible, whether or not they still fit the criteria."

"After 3 weeks of public hearings, Module 4 of the UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry completed on Friday 31 January 2025, with closing statements delivered by Core Participants. !

"Clinically vulnerable people are cancelling or delaying medical appointments as the NHS battles a winter “quad-demic” of viruses, new data has shown.

Escalating cases of flu, Covid, norovirus and the cold-like respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) have piled pressure on an already overstretched health service."

"Sarah Steven, 52, a member of the group Clinically Vulnerable Families, told the PA news agency outside the UK Covid-19 Inquiry that “today is really key for us but we’re not expecting to hear anything we don’t already know”.

Ms Steven, who was clinically vulnerable during the pandemic, described the end of lockdown rules in July 2021 as like “falling off a cliff edge” with “no support”."

"The Covid-19 pandemic has laid bare the vulnerabilities in our healthcare system, but for those of us who have been fighting for the protection of Clinically Vulnerable people, this is nothing new."

"Adam Wagner, representing clinically vulnerable families, called for the inquiry to establish procedures, such as the provision of high-quality masks, clean air and good ventilation, for schools.

“When schools are safe for the most vulnerable to attend, they are safe for everyone to attend,” he said. The failure to do that had tragic consequences, he added, giving the example of Cara, 16, who was not supported in wearing a mask at school and went on to pass the infection to her shielding, clinically vulnerable mother, who died from the illness.

“Cara self-harms because she blames herself. She hasn’t been to school since,” he said."

"Lara Wong, founder of the support group Clinically Vulnerable Families, said the report had “starkly highlighted the nation’s insufficient pandemic preparedness, severely affecting clinically vulnerable people”.

She said: “Both clinically vulnerable and disabled people’s organisations (CVPOs and DPOs) were notably absent as core participants in this first module, undermining the representation from those most at risk in pandemics."

"The first report into the UK’s response to the Covid pandemic has “missed significant issues faced by clinically vulnerable (CV) families”, states an organisation which has given evidence to the public inquiry.

The UK Covid-19 Inquiry published its first report this month setting out its findings and recommendations."

"An organ transplant recipient who could not vote last year as she wears a face mask has hailed an outdoor ID check system."

Note/ CVF would like to make it clear that a local trial was in place and no such "new rule" exists

"The UK Covid-19 Inquiry will hear from hundreds of young people about the lasting effects of the Covid-19 pandemic to form legal evidence for future recommendations."

"A recent episode of the hospital drama Casualty misrepresented the very serious risks that Covid still poses. Jane Stevenson wrote to the BBC to explain just how wrong they’d got it.

On Saturday 9 March, an episode of Casualty was broadcast, “Trauma”, which created a lot of upset. After reading a robust Twitter/X post by Clinically Vulnerable Families, I watched the episode myself. I am writing to complain that a storyline in this episode amplified Covid misinformation and missed out some crucial context."

"Andrea Barrett, who had a heart transplant as a child and is medically vulnerable, is challenging ‘discriminatory’ new voter ID rules after being told she could not vote at polling station unless she removed her mask"

"People with medical conditions and allergies who have been unable to get Covid vaccines will finally be able to access their first jab – but it will cost them £45.

The Novavax vaccine is set to go on sale privately throughout Britain from 1 April this year.

This will mean that those previously unable to obtain the Pfizer or Moderna vaccinations due to potential adverse reactions may now be able to receive a Covid jab because Novavax is a different kind of vaccine."

"Protesters gathered outside St Thomas’ Hospital on Monday to hand out leaflets and face masks as they demanded changes to “flawed” infection control guidelines in place across the NHS."

"A Government campaign that encourages parents to send their children to school despite them having a runny nose or stomach ache has been criticised as “patronising, insulting and dangerous”.

Families with serious health issues reacted furiously to the campaign to boost school attendance, accusing the Department for Education (DfE) of “dangerous messaging” that ignored the needs and safety of the clinically vulnerable.

“I couldn’t believe it when I saw these attendance ads,” said Michelle Bulloch, the mother of clinically extremely vulnerable twins. "

"Clinically vulnerable patients such as David Brown have voiced concerns at being denied a newer XBB vaccine despite it being more effective against the JN.1 strain"

"A woman classed as clinically vulnerable has said she is concerned about the end to the Covid-19 booster vaccination programme.

Sarah Steven, from Buckinghamshire, believes people "need vaccines to protect them all year round because there are no mitigations in place"."

"It is 1.35pm and I’m having to explain coronavirus transmission to a nurse. I am due an appointment at 2.30, and I’ve been phoned because I say I’m clinically vulnerable. I ask whether the nurse has an N95 mask (as they’re proved to be most effective). She does not. I ask whether she and the team are taking weekly lateral flow tests, like her colleague said. She is not, and is unsure why that was promised.

“We don’t need to do that any more,” she says breezily. What she means is: she has no official duty to do so any more. Clinically vulnerable (CV) patients still “need” the Covid-19 protections. They just don’t get them."

"Changes to the way Covid treatments are obtained by those most at risk from the disease could lead to a “postcode lottery” for access, experts have said, with charities saying that patients have been left confused and frustrated by the new system.

Previously, people eligible for Covid treatments in England were contacted by their local Covid Medicines Delivery Unit (CMDU) once they reported testing positive for the virus."

"NHS England has been criticised for a lack of transparency and communication, with a pharmacist saying the change of plan will likely "catch patients off guard".

NHS England is set to push back the joint COVID-19 and flu autumn booster vaccination programme in a move criticised by clinically vulnerable patients and leading pharmacists.

While school-aged children will be able to receive the flu shot from 1 September, adults aren't expected to start getting flu and COVID vaccines until October, a month later than recent years."

"This year's local elections are the first time voters have had to show photographic ID."

"As part of that process, the Covid-19 infection survey has been paused ahead of a review by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA). My unease over this has only grown since the last updated was published. I believe this will potentially have a serious knock-on effect for thousands of clinically vulnerable Britons."

“When parents are regularly contacting the school and asking for help and support and trying to work out a plan to get their children back to school safely, they shouldn’t be taken to court.”"

"Lara Wong, founder of campaign group Clinically Vulnerable Families, said the decision was minimising the lived experience of high risk individuals to the point they are not even worthy of a mention."

"The campaign group Clinically Vulnerable Families (CVF) made the call at a preliminary hearing of the inquiry’s third module, which will examine health systems across the UK."

"Campaigners said parents were ‘incredibly concerned’ and many felt they had no choice but to risk potential fines and prosecutions by keeping their children home ahead of the end of term"

"Families with clinically vulnerable children are “incredibly concerned” about the Strep A outbreak and have it"

"Jeremy Hunt vowed to protect disabled people, but in his Autumn Statement he once again hits those can't work, leaving them to suffer"

"Push to get children back to the classroom leaves families with severe health conditions feeling their needs are not being met"

"On this briefing, we had a discussion on Covid safety, especially with regard to the #CEV community, with guests Dr Lennard Lee, Lara Wong & Cathy Finnis, hosted by Dr Stephen Griffin & Prof Sheena Cruickshank, chaired by Prof Anthony Costello & numbers by Prof Christina Pagel."

"The former judge promised that the inquiry would ‘not drag on for decades, producing reports when it is too late for them to do any good’."

"Generous i readers have offered free tuition to Lana Collie-James for GCSE resits as the teenager prepares to start college with fresh hope for her art course dreams"

"Lana Collie-James’ GCSE results are a ‘world away’ from her predicted grades, says her mother Anna who believes her daughter was ‘massively let down’ and that the needs of clinically vulnerable families were dismissed"

"Covid testing for people without symptoms in care homes and hospitals to be scrapped at the end of August"

"On this briefing we had a session on ‘Creating Safe Environments’, with guests Dr. David Tomlinson, Lara Wong and Assc Prof Lena Ciric, session hosted by Prof Trish Greenhalgh & Prof Susan Michie, Dr Guddi Singh as chair & Prof Christina Pagel on numbers."

"Fears growing that energy bills could top £3,200 - meaning millions won't be able to afford heating"

"One mum reveals she won't go to hospital for a heart procedure while another vulnerable patient believes removing the mask mandate in clinical settings will not only put people at risk of Covid, but increase staffing pressure on the NHS."

"Exclusive: ‘We will have a new wave of infections this month,’ warns Professor Christina Pagel"

"A teenager says she has been forced to teach herself her GCSEs while shielding to protect her vulnerable mother because her school has not provided adequate resources."

"In this briefing, Independent SAGE along with several unions the Covid-19 Safety Pledge & had discussion on how to keep public spaces safe. With guests Janet Newsham, Tracy Edwards, Lara Wong and many others, chaired by Professor Stephen Reicher, hosted by Professor Anthony Costello and numbers presented by Dr. Deepti Gurdasani."

"Unions back scheme to ensure healthy working environments

"A coalition of safety campaigners, trade unions and public health experts are battling to make workplaces safe from Covid infections."

"Patients have reported being turned away by GPs and hospital doctors, while others say they’ve been ‘pushed from pillar to post’ in an attempt to get hold of the medication"

"Some 1.3 million very high-risk people are still in lockdown, fearing for their lives as the Government lifts Covid curbs."

"The health service said it had procured nearly five million doses of Paxlovid and other antivirals, such as Molnupiravir, as part of a deal struck with the government."