Covid Vaccination Service

We sincerely apologise to providers and their staff that have been affected by people who have booked vaccination appointments for which they were not eligible. In some cases, people have not recognised that their eligibility has changed, and they have self-declared eligibility using the app or online. In other cases, self-declaration bookings have been made following the receipt of a national communication advising that they may have a health condition that makes them eligible for vaccination.

This has led to uncertainty and public frustration where people have been clinically assessed as ineligible, and reports of untoward behaviour from members of the public have been escalated to NHS England. This violence or aggression against staff is unacceptable and every member of your vaccination team has a right to feel supported, safe, and secure at work.

The National Booking Service improves access to vaccinations and disease prevention through a simple, user-friendly platform. It is not intended for clinical triage or eligibility checks, but it does allow an individual to self-declare their eligibility status in order to book an appointment (and understand why they may or may not receive the vaccine on the day if they didn’t meet this criteria). The website does detail the eligibility criteria to ensure that those booking are aware of whether they may be eligible, and that they may be asked some questions at the vaccination site to check they’re eligible, but we understand that not all people making a booking meet the eligibility criteria.

For winter vaccination invitations NHS England uses information from NHS records to check eligibility. The information in these records may no longer be relevant if the health condition has resolved or the diagnosis or medicines have changed, which is why our invitations state that “you may have a condition”. If an individual thinks a change in health may mean they are no longer eligible, please advise them to visit: NHS England » Who to contact if you have an enquiry about a vaccination invitation. It remains the responsibility of the vaccinator to check eligibility status as this may not be clear from clinical coding on medical records.

Further work is underway nationally to assist providers in supporting individuals to understand why they are or are not eligible, including through information on the National Booking Service. In the interim please find attached a single branded eligibility checklist that can be used as a prompt for vaccinators at sites when discussing eligibility. Community Pharmacy England has also issued some clear messaging at:

• Who should have the COVID-19 vaccine this winter? and
• Information on immunosuppression and C-19 vaccination (Poster)

Thank you for all your hard work and professionalism in the face of these challenges, and for continuing to confirm eligibility of those presenting to your clinics.