Immunosuppression: Coronavirus

Department of Health and Social Care written question – answered at on 21 January 2022.

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Photo of Ian Byrne Ian Byrne Labour, Liverpool, West Derby

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what specific support his Department is taking to help protect people who are immunocompromised and have at least one child attending school settings from covid-19 infection; and whether his Department is taking additional steps to protect those people from infection with the omicron variant of covid-19.

Photo of Maggie Throup Maggie Throup The Parliamentary Under-Secretary for Health and Social Care

On 29 November 2021, the Government accepted advice from the independent Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) in response to the Omicron variant. This stated that that severely immunosuppressed individuals who have completed the course of three primary doses should be offered a booster vaccination, with a minimum of three months between the third primary and booster dose. Those who have not yet received their third dose may receive this immediately with a booster dose given in three months.

On 22 December 2021, the JCVI further advised that those aged 16 to 17 years old, those aged 12 to 15 years old who are a household contact of someone who is immunosuppressed and 12 to 15 year olds in a clinical risk group, should be offered a booster dose no sooner than three months after completion of their primary course. It also advised that children aged five to 11 years old who are a household contact of someone who is immunosuppressed and those in a clinical risk group should be offered two doses of the vaccine.

Immunocompromised individuals are also a priority cohort for research into therapeutic and prophylaxis treatments such as monoclonal antibody therapies, novel antivirals and repurposed compounds. The highest risk cohort of non-hospitalised patients, including those who are immunocompromised, can access treatments from COVID Medicines Delivery Units, if clinically eligible. These treatments include molnupiravir, an antiviral drug, and sotrovimab, a monoclonal antibody infusion. Another monoclonal antibody treatment, ronapreve, is available to treat the most vulnerable hospitalised patients in the United Kingdom where genotyping shows they are not infected with the Omicron variant. Vulnerable patients with hospital-onset infection with the Omicron variant may be eligible to receive sotrovimab.

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