Last month, Richard wrote to the Health Secretary Matt Hancock about the urgent need for covid vaccination priority for people with learning disabilities, particularly those living in residential care homes and who had been separated from their families. He also recently had a virtual meeting with Mencap to discuss their concerns.
Yesterday, the Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations recommended that everyone on the GP Learning Disability Register should now be vaccinated in cohort 6. The vaccination process for people in cohort 6 is underway.
Full details are available here.
Commenting on this announcement, Richard said: "This is very welcome news. This prioritisation of vaccinations for such a vulnerable group of people is absolutely right. I know from speaking to constituents with family members with a learning disability just how important this issue is, particularly for people who live in residential care homes. Some people with a learning disability will have recevied a vaccination as a result of other medical conditions but for many other people with a learning disbility, this is welcome news. The Health Secretary has acted quickly to accept the JCVI's recommendation and has asked the NHS to implement this immediately."
