‘Asians must get top priority for Covid vaccines’

by LAUREN CODLING

COMMUNITY leaders have questioned why ethnic minority groups have not been prioritised for the Covid-19 vaccine, as the UK became the first country in the world to roll out the immunisation on Tuesday (8).

As Eastern Eye went to press, the shot became available at 50 hospitals across the country, after it was announced the NHS would give priority to vaccinating care home residents and staff, frontline healthcare workers and those over the age of 80.

However, some have argued that ethnic minorities should also be on the priority list as studies have shown they are at high risk of contracting the virus.

Professor Wei Shen Lim, Covid-19 chair for the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI), acknowledged evidence showing BAME communities had higher rates of infection, serious disease, morbidity and mortality. He told Eastern Eye: “Tailored local implementation to promote good vaccine coverage in BAME groups will be the most important factor in a vaccine programme in reducing health inequalities in these groups.”

Dr Kailash Chand, honorary vice-president of the British Medical Association (BMA) and a former BMA deputy chair, said it was “despicable” ethnic minority groups had not been considered a priority group to receive the vaccine. Dr Chand said that despite BAME frontline workers continuing to work in high-risk environments, they were treated as “second-class citizens”.

“It seems hypocritical that the politicians applaud the contribution of BAME healthcare staff, key workers and these communities in general, but no steps have been taken to ensure they are protected from the threat of Covid,” he told Eastern Eye. “It is despicable that BAME communities have been not considered as a priority group for Covid vaccination even though that would seem to be the logical approach, to protect those at higher risk.”

He added: “The BAME (community) are good enough to work on the frontline at risk services, good enough to die disproportionately, but not good enough to be prioritised for vaccination.”

The BMA council chair, Dr Chaand Nagpaul, said community leaders and public health staff should work to support local BAME groups, ensuring that as many people are vaccinated as possible. He said it was particularly important for members of the Asian community to feel comfortable about the vaccine, so they were more likely to be inoculated. “They must feel confident and well-informed to do this and this means good public health messaging through the right channels – trusted and owned by local communities, and ideally delivered together with community leaders,” Dr Nagpaul told Eastern Eye.

Dr Nikita Kanani is the NHS England medical director for primary care. Noting the evidence showing the disproportionate impact of the coronavirus on ethnic minorities, the London-based GP also highlighted the importance of BAME groups taking up the offer of the vaccine. She said the NHS was working to reach out and support all communities.

“This will be a marathon, not a sprint, but we’re working hard to ensure as many people as possible get vaccinated so they can protect themselves and their families, starting this week with older people and care home staff,” she said.

London mayor Sadiq Khan told Eastern Eye he had written to the prime minister and the JCVI asking for public-facing workers and Londoners from BAME communities to be part of the priority group.

“It is vital that the most vulnerable members of our society are prioritised, including our heroic frontline key workers, many of whom also belong to BAME communities,” the mayor said on Tuesday. “The government must review the evidence from the disastrous first wave of this pandemic to ensure that the vaccination programme is managed effectively and reaches those who need it most, first.”

Khan said he would be actively involved in discussions with the government, in order to ensure the needs of the capital’s diverse communities were met as vaccine plans were developed. He added that he would encourage his own family, including his elderly mother, to take the vaccine.

Rokhsana Fiaz, mayor of Newham in east London, said the government had to ensure that all obstacles which may prevent those who need it from being reached with the vaccine programme were removed. These include matters of language, trust building and digital exclusion. “Here in Newham we are already in discussions across our local communities about some of the issues and concerns they may have, and to reinforce our message that this vaccine provides real and much-needed hope for the future,” she told Eastern Eye.

Last month, analysis from the Universities of Leicester and Nottingham revealed that people of Asian ethnicity are 1.5 times more likely than white people to be infected by the virus. Patients from Asian backgrounds are also more likely to be admitted to intensive care and to die from the virus.

The research confirmed previous findings by Public Health England (PHE) and the Office for National Statistics (ONS), which noted the heightened risk within BAME groups.

The Labour MP for Leicester East, Claudia Webbe, said it was “vital” to ensure that ethnic communities were not marginalised when it comes to receiving a vaccine. The news of a vaccine was “fantastic,” she said, but added that it was crucial it was distributed based on need, and at-risk groups were prioritised.

“(Boris Johnson’s) government has refused to take any actions that would specifically protect our (ethnic) communities,” she told Eastern Eye. “If they are unwilling to even recognise the connection between economic and physical wellbeing, it is clear this government is not serious about combating health inequalities.”

Earlier this month, the Royal College of GPs (RCG) also questioned why ethnic groups were not included on the priority list for the vaccine. Although RCG head Professor Martin Marshall accepted “there may be legitimate reasons, such as data availability, why it is not possible to reflect ethnicity in the current list”, he argued doctors needed to see the rationale behind the exclusion. “Data clearly indicates that patients from ethnic minority backgrounds are more susceptible to contracting and dying from the virus,” he said in a letter to health secretary Matt Hancock, seeking answers.

Others have urged local authorities to ensure they communicate efficiently with ethnic communities on vaccination developments so that people feel confident about the process.