Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the role of Clinical Commissioning Groups will be in the nationwide roll out of a covid-19 vaccine.
The NHS has a tried and tested track record for delivering vaccination programmes and is working with existing partners across the healthcare system to ensure the Covid-19 vaccine can be deployed safely and effectively. Deployment planning is being led by local integrated care system/sustainability and transformation partnerships, with clinical commissioning groups playing a key role in the planning with partners across their system.
In particular, local systems are best placed to reach out to our diverse communities and avoid inequalities in access, and every system should have a plan for full coverage for health inclusion groups. Regional teams working with local systems have identified local health inclusion groups that will require access to the vaccine, within eligible patient cohorts. Locally commissioned arrangements to reach these groups may include local NHS Community & Mental Health Trust providers, PCNs or partnership activity with statutory and voluntary services. Working with Primary Care Networks and NHJS regional teams, Clinical Commissioning Group have also played an important role selecting local vaccination sites. CCGs are also co-ordinating arrangements for all health and care staff to receive their vaccination locally.