Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the priority given to foster carers, as part of the covid-19 vaccination programme.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) has advised that the priority for the current COVID-19 vaccination programme should be the prevention of COVID-19 mortality and the protection of health and social care staff and systems.
All frontline social care workers directly working with people who are clinically vulnerable to COVID-19 and need care and support, irrespective of where they work, will be a priority for phase one of the COVID-19 vaccine programme.
The Government will set out plans for phase two of vaccination in due course, based on further advice from the JCVI. Phase two of the roll-out may include further reduction in hospitalisation and targeted vaccination of those at high risk of exposure and/or those delivering key public services.