Coronavirus: Quarantine and Vaccination

(asked on 24th February 2021) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 10 February 2021 to Question 147966, whether people with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency will be (a) added to the Shielding Patient List and (b) prioritised for the covid-19 vaccine.


Answered by
Jo Churchill Portrait
Jo Churchill
Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This question was answered on 9th March 2021

Alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency is not a specific condition included in the definition of clinically extremely vulnerable groups. Individuals with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency are only added to the Shielded Patient List (SPL) automatically if they also have pulmonary emphysema, which meets the criteria of ‘severe respiratory conditions’ used in the definition. However, individuals with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency may be added to the SPL if they have other medical conditions that are included in the definition of clinically extremely vulnerable groups, or if their general practitioner or clinician, based on their clinical judgement, deems them to be at high risk of serious illness form COVID-19.

Anyone over the age of 16 years old who is considered clinically extremely vulnerable should have now been offered a COVID-19 vaccine as part of priority group four, as recommended by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. Otherwise, individuals with alpha-1 antitrypsin deficiency will be offered a COVID-19 vaccine depending on their age and the severity of their condition.

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