‘I’ve stopped being eligible for the Covid vaccine and I’ve caught it three times in six months’
A woman who had half her lung removed has called for the Covid vaccine to be given the same priority as the flu jab after contracting the virus three times in the months she was removed from the eligibility list.
Ella Halpern-Matthews, an urban historian, has a serious respiratory disease and has suffered from asthma since birth.
He had half of his lung removed due to cystic adenomatoid malformation and suffered from chronic chest infections, making him more vulnerable to colds and Covid. But eligibility for an NHS booster jab ended earlier this year when the health service updated its criteria.
The 27-year-old actor is taking precautions to protect himself by wearing a high-quality face mask and staying away from crowded, poorly ventilated areas such as the London Underground. Despite this, he has caught Covid three times since his last dose of vaccination.
He says his health condition has left him feeling “cut off from society”, forcing him to miss parties, concerts or family birthdays.
He said: “If I want to preserve my health, I am essentially forced to become a monk and renounce community and public life.”
He added: “Beyond the physical and mental exhaustion of the infection, the UK social scene has been extremely difficult to navigate because no one wants to talk about Covid, no one is testing when they are sick and people don’t like to cancel plans when they don’t feel well.
Ms Halpern-Matthews said she had “had frank and difficult conversations with friends and loved ones” about testing and wearing masks and was now “actively seeking new Covid-conscious friends”.
Eligibility for the seasonal Covid vaccine in England is now only available to adults aged 75 and over, older adult care home residents and immunocompromised people, according to the Green Paper, which acts as a guide to vaccination for healthcare professionals in the UK.
This represents a change from Fall 2024, which included adults ages 65-74 or those 6 months and older in the clinical risk group.
Ms Halpern-Matthews used to fall into the immunocompromised category, but since this spring the NHS has tightened the criteria to only apply to those taking immunosuppressant medication. He had his last Covid jab last year and has had a total of eight jabs since 2021, all free on the NHS.
NHS Kent and Ms Halpern-Matthews’ local provider, Medway, said they could not comment on the details of individual cases but were following national vaccination guidance.
But the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI), which sets the national guidelines, said the Green Paper’s list of immunocompromised individuals was “not comprehensive” and “the prescriber may need to make clinical judgment” to take into account the risk of Covid exacerbating any underlying disease.
Ms Halpern-Matthews had to crowdfund her next vaccine because she says she couldn’t afford to pay a private provider; The vaccines are priced between £75 and £120 in independent pharmacies in the UK.
He said: “I’m broke to be honest. If I could afford to pay out of pocket I would. But at the same time I think part of it is about raising awareness of how dire the situation is here.”
“You can get the Covid vaccine in France for under €10, you can get it cheaper across the EU. If I had paid for the Eurostar and taken a day trip to France and had the vaccine, it would have cost me less than a private vaccine on the proverbial doorstep which I prefer here in the UK.”
“This is a really clear example of the two-tier healthcare system we have now, where people who can afford private healthcare can go and do all of this for themselves, have a private GP and have access to all these essential life-saving medicines.”
Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Independent Pharmacists Association (IPA), described the NHS flu and Covid vaccine booking system as “chaos” and said some pharmacists had told their patients they had become aggressive when told they were not eligible for the NHS Covid vaccine.
He said: “The NHS’s booking system this year is poor and has confused everyone. It allows patients aged 65 to 74 to book appointments and declare themselves as immunocompromised, even if they are not, and the definition of immunocompromised is not clear to them.”
The IPA raised concerns in August when the JCVI announced its decision to exclude patients aged 65 to 74 who are not immunocompromised.
Ms Hanbeck added: “This is particularly worrying as there have been reports of a new strain of Covid. Last year, there were a large number of hospitalizations due to winter viruses, so it is worrying that they have decided to limit this rather than increase public protection by vaccinating a larger cohort.”
“Poor systems and poor communication do not help patient care as decision makers leave pharmacies on the front lines to manage the chaos.”
