Government considers drive-through flu-jab clinics in plan to double winter vaccinations

Drive-through flu-jab clinics are being considered to deliver the biggest-ever vaccination programme this winter.

On Friday Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that more than half the population of England will be offered free jabs, to ensure the NHS can cope if there is a second wave of coronavirus.

Health officials are now in talks about how to ensure good uptake, with ambitions to vaccinate 30 million people, up from 15 million last year.

However, most GP practices are restricting face-to-face consultations, and the Royal College of General Practitioners has warned that administering the jabs could take twice as long as normal, because of the need to wear protective equipment.

Health officials are discussing ways to increase uptake of the jabs, in as speedy and low-risk a way as possible. Options include a roll out of drive-through clinics, and models which see patients travelling on foot given jabs in surgery and health clinic car-parks, or through practice windows, rather than entering the premises.

There are also talks about how to recruit enough people to administer the vaccines.

Retired doctors and nurses may be asked to return to the workforce, to boost uptake in coming months.

The new plans aim to expand the programme to everyone over the age of 50, as well as to children up to the first year of secondary school, pensioners, pregnant women and everyone shielding and their households.

The most vulnerable will be targeted first, meaning healthy people aged between 50 and 64 may not be contacted until close to Christmas.