The cost of private Covid jabs risks widening health inequalities, experts warn

Experts and patient groups have warned that the high cost of private Covid vaccinations could widen health inequalities and leave those more at risk from the virus without a vital line of defence.

Both retail chain Boots and pharmacies working with company Pharmadoctor are now offering Covid jabs to those who don’t qualify for a free vaccination through the NHS, with the former charging almost £100 for the Pfizer/BioNTech jab.

While Pharmadoctor says each pharmacy sets its own prices, it suggests the Pfizer/BioNTech jab will cost customers £75-£85, while the latest Novavax jab will cost around £45-£55.

However, experts have expressed concern that the high cost of the private jabs will increase inequality, making the vaccinations unaffordable for many.

“The most disadvantaged in society are at greatest risk of exposure to respiratory viruses due to issues such as poverty, intergenerational households and overcrowded workplaces. While they may be most in need of a seasonal vaccine, they are also the least likely to be able to afford £100 amid a cost of living crisis,” said Dr Marija Pantelic from the University of Sussex.

While some have noted that private Covid jabs cost much more than a seasonal flu vaccination, which costs around £20, Graham Thoms, Pharmadoctor’s chief executive, said margins for both are similar at around 40%.

“For example, pharmacists will buy flu vaccines from the manufacturers for around £5, while the Novavax Covid vaccine will cost them £36 (including VAT). Therefore, the Covid vaccination service using the Novavax vaccine will cost patients an average of £50,” he said.

Although free Covid jabs will be provided in the NHS spring booster campaign, these will be limited to adults aged 75 and over, residents of care homes for older adults and people aged six months and over who are immunosuppressed – a smaller group than for the recent fall Covid booster campaign.

Professor Sir Andrew Pollard, director of the Oxford Vaccine Group, said the NHS vaccination program is based on cost-effectiveness and focuses on protecting those who are most vulnerable and therefore most likely to end up in hospital.

“Vaccination of those who are not vulnerable, (such as) younger, healthy adults, still has the potential to lower the risk of infection, which is good for them, but the benefits to the healthcare system and therefore to taxpayers are very small .” Pollard said, while noting that workplace vaccination programs could reduce worker absenteeism, which could be valuable to society.

However, many have raised concerns that some groups at increased risk from Covid-19 are no longer eligible for jabs on the NHS, meaning protection comes with a hefty price tag.

“The availability of private vaccines will disproportionately impact high-risk groups, including diabetics, who are responsible for a significant number of Covid deaths,” said Lara Wong, founder of the support and advocacy group. Clinically vulnerable families.

“Despite recently approved for antiviral treatmentsThese newly approved groups will not have access to them until 2025, and they will also not be offered the NHS spring boosters they so desperately need,” she said.

Pantelic added that some people may not even know they are at increased risk from Covid, as many have undiagnosed conditions and socio-economic stressors that compromise their immune systems.

Professor Amitava Banerjee from University College London also raised concerns about whether the booster campaign is reaching all high-risk groups. He added that the rationale for current eligibility needs to be better communicated, while more attention should be paid to the potential impact of not expanding the campaign. free provision, also in the field of long Covid.

The latter, he said, is important because vaccinations appear to reduce – but not eliminate – the risk of ending up with long Covid-19, and reduce the severity of the condition when it does occur – the only remedy currently available is known to do this.

“Again, making (a Covid jab) something that people have to pay for limits access to it – probably among the people who are most at risk and more vulnerable,” he said.

Stephen Griffin, a virologist at the University of Leeds, agreed.

“While obtaining a vaccine privately may be better than nothing, it inevitably creates two-tiered access,” he said. “This is an absurd price in the midst of a cost of living crisis and it is not the way Britain should be tackling such an important public health issue.”