Planning for the roll-out of a COVID-19 vaccine in Wales, when it’s available, is well underway according to Public Health Wales and they are ready to deliver the vaccine to those who are eligible.

The impact of safe and effective COVID-19 vaccines would offer individual protection as well as greater protection for our loved ones and communities. In time it could mean that restrictions are eased and we can move further towards a return to more normal day-to-day life.

Several trials across many countries are continuing and we are getting closer to securing a safely tested and successful vaccine.

The UK has bought supplies of seven Covid-19 vaccines including 40 million from Pfizer/BioNTech and five million from Moderna. Both vaccines have shown above 90% effectiveness in trials.

In Wales, planning has been underway for some time to make sure that systems are ready for when a vaccine does become available and approved as safe and effective for use. This includes organising the logistics for transporting and storing the vaccine, identifying suitable venues for vaccinations to take place, and ensuring that sufficient trained staff are available to administer the vaccines.

There is currently no firm date for a COVID-19 vaccine to become available, however, NHS Wales will be ready from 1 December 2020 to offer a vaccine as soon as one is approved for use.

Eligibility for the vaccine

There may only be small quantities of a vaccine at first, so it will be offered to those who are most at risk first. Eventually every adult will be offered the vaccine.

The groups to be prioritised to receive a COVID-19 vaccine first, are decided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) at a UK level. This is based on knowledge around who is most at risk from COVID-19.

This interim ranking of priorities is a combination of clinical risk stratification and an age-based approach, which should optimise both targeting and deliverability. A provisional ranking of prioritisation for persons at-risk is set out below:

  • older adults’ resident in a care home and care home workers
  • all those 80 years of age and over and health and social care workers
  • all those 75 years of age and over
  • all those 70 years of age and over
  • all those 65 years of age and over
  • high-risk adults under 65 years of age
  • moderate-risk adults under 65 years of age
  • all those 60 years of age and over
  • all those 55 years of age and over
  • all those 50 years of age and over
  • rest of the population (priority to be determined)

The prioritisation could change substantially if the first available vaccines were not considered suitable for, or effective in, older adults.

Is a Vaccine Safe?

For a vaccine to reach the general public it will have to work and be safe.

There may be a misconception that vaccine research takes a long time but it isn’t the research that takes the time – it’s all the steps beforehand, like getting funding and approval. What’s sped up in the development of a COVID-19 vaccine is the funding. The UK Government funded trials to get them up and running quickly.

The Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and Medicines Research Authority have sped up the process of approval – things like administrative paperwork that used to take months is now being done in days. This is what’s brought down the time for delivery of the clinical trials.

Processes have been streamlined and run in parallel. The length of the trials themselves have not been shortened, and the usual safety measures remain in place and high standards must still be met.

It has also been enabled by new technology, including the ability to rapidly manufacture vaccines. And supply – the vaccine is being produced already so that as soon as it’s known to be safe and effective it can be made available.

For the full list of Frequently Asked Questions visit the Public Health Wales website here: https://phw.nhs.wales/topics/immunisation-and-vaccines/covid-19-vaccination-information/