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LIVE: U.K. Officials Hold Coronavirus Briefing in London
Posted
November 12, 2020
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November 12, 2020
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33
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34:07Now Playing(Nov. 12) Watch live as U.K. government officials hold a news conference in London about the coronavirus pandemic on Thursday, November 12, 2020.
As optimism grows that developers from Pfizer Inc. to AstraZeneca Plc are on the cusp of delivering a vaccine, Britain is preparing for one of its biggest peacetime mobilizations. The nation has signed deals for 350 million doses and put its regulator in position to potentially approve shots before the European Union, seeking to become one of the first nations to roll out a vaccine.
Even the army has been pressed into service to ensure doses get to hospitals and doctors’ offices, as Prime Minister Boris Johnson tries to save Christmas for a country suffering through its second lockdown this year.
But Britain’s erratic response to the crisis, including its panned approach to testing and contact tracing, has fueled concerns that authorities may bungle the distribution of shots as well. With about 50,000 deaths from Covid-19, the U.K. has one of the highest mortality rates in the world, and a resurgence of cases threatens to overwhelm a health system that’s been under increasing strain for years.
“The main priority is making sure that the vaccination rollout program doesn’t end up mired in the same sort of mess as test-and-trace,” said Sara Gorton, head of health at Unison, the U.K. union that represents medical workers.
A shortfall in supplies of the AstraZeneca shot expected to be available by the end of the year casts doubt on how fast the U.K. will be able to vaccinate the public. In the most optimistic estimate, achieving herd immunity -- a level seen at 60% to 70% of the population -- could occur in September 2021, according to London-based Airfinity Ltd. But it could take longer.
Deployment will start with care-home residents and staff, followed by people more than 80 years old, health workers and then the wider population, based on age and risk, the government said.
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