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NHS Invites People Aged 60-Plus in the West Midlands To Book Life-Saving Covid Jab

People aged 60 to 63 in the West Midlands are now being invited to get their life-saving coronavirus vaccine at one of the vaccination centres and pharmacy-led sites across the region. The latest batch of letters, arriving from today, will mean everyone in the first seven priority groups will have been offered a jab.

People aged 64 were invited to have a life-saving jab last week and letters have started arriving at the homes of those aged 60 to 63 today explaining how they can arrange a vaccination through the national booking service. Those most at risk are being vaccinated first in line with guidance from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation.

Alison Tonge, Regional Director of Commissioning at NHS England and NHS Improvement in the Midlands, said: “In just a few months, the NHS has made extraordinary progress in vaccinating more than 17 million people across the country and it is incredible that more than nine out of 10 people aged 65 and over have already received potentially life-saving protection.

“It is down to the hard work of NHS staff, volunteers and all the others supporting the vaccination programme, that we can now invite everyone aged 60 to 63 years old to arrange an appointment to get jabbed as soon as possible.

“It is never too late to take up the offer and I would urge anyone eligible who has yet to do so to come forward and protect yourself and others.”

Since the NHS became the first health service anywhere in the world to give out a Covid-19 vaccine in December last year, when 90-year old Maggie Keenan got her jab in Coventry, more than 1.6 million people in the West Midlands have had their first dose.

People can use the national booking service to reserve a slot at one of more than 100 NHS Vaccination Centres or almost 200 pharmacy-led services across the country.

The booking service can be accessed at http://www.nhs.uk/covid-vaccination. Those who cannot go online can call 119 free of charge.

NHS teams are visiting those who are housebound and cannot travel to a vaccination service.

Appointments are staggered to allow for social distancing and people are being asked not to turn up early to avoid creating queues.

Everyone will receive a health status check and a pre-vaccination assessment before they have their jab.