COVID-19 Walk-in sites to now offer booster jabs without an appointment

Around 30 million people who received their second vaccine more than six months ago will be able to get a booster shot without making an appointment. People can check their nearest walk-in centre using the NHS online walk-in finder.

According to the latest figures from the Department of Health, approximately 8 million people in the UK have had a booster shot or a third dosage, accounting for roughly 13.8 per cent of the vaccinated population aged 12 and above. Dr Nikki Kanani who is a GP and deputy lead for the NHS England COVID-19 vaccination programme said

The booster is not just nice to have, it is really important protection ahead of what we know will be a challenging winter.

Booster Jab better than Restrictions

This move of making Booster shots walk-in comes after a rise in COVID-19 cases was seen. According to the latest government numbers, the UK registered a total of 38,009 coronavirus cases and 74 linked deaths in the last 24 hours. On this, Prime Minister Boris Johnson commented,

I think rather than thinking [about] new restrictions, the best thing everybody can do is get that booster jab as soon as you're offered it. I think people don't quite realise that the first two jabs do start to wane.

How sad, how tragic it would be if people who had other complications, other compromises in their health, got seriously ill because they were overconfident about their level of immunity and didn't get their booster when they needed it.

Who is entitled to the booster jab?

Amidst this concern, it is vital for people to get booster shots. People over the age of 50, care home staff and residents, and frontline health and social care workers are all eligible for a booster shot. Further, adults sharing a home with vulnerable persons and people aged 16 to 49 with underlying health issues that put them at higher risk of severe COVID are included.

As such, to make sure more and more people are protected, booster shots will be quickly available. The top-up will be offered at hundreds of locations across England, with nearly everyone enrolled with a GP practice living within 10 miles of a fixed vaccination site, according to NHS England.