START OF COVID VACCINATION IN SOUTH YORKSHIRE

Published 8 December 2020 at 12:00am

Reacting to the first COVID vaccinations in South Yorkshire, Dan Jarvis, Mayor of the Sheffield City Region, said:

“For the first time today, people in South Yorkshire are being vaccinated against COVID. It’s the beginning of a process that will see us finally get this pandemic fully under control. This is a moment for celebration, but also for caution: until the vaccine is fully rolled out, we must not let our guard down.

“The phased vaccination programme will first give the vaccine to the most vulnerable group, those aged 80 and above who are already hospital outpatients. Care home residents, as well as care home and NHS workers, are also among the highest priority groups who will begin to get the vaccine before Christmas. Invitations will be sent to those eligible to attend a vaccination centre or hospital to get the jab, plus a booster shot three weeks later.

“While this marks a decisive turning point in the effort to control COVID, the vaccine will take months to fully roll out, and until then it remains dangerous. This is when we most need to hold the line. If we let our guard down too early, the deaths that will result will be all the more tragic for being so unnecessary.

“The national lockdown and the Tier 3 restrictions that preceded it have been deeply painful, but they have also been effective. Our infection rate in South Yorkshire has come down to a range of between 154 and 205 cases per 100,000 people. But we need it to go down further, and meanwhile our hospitals are under even greater pressure than they were in the spring, with the number of people admitted still rising. If we relax too early, there is a serious risk of a third wave early in 2021.

“That’s why I’m asking everyone in South Yorkshire to continue to follow social distancing rules, not just for your own sakes but for all those around you. We are in the home stretch, but to win this race we have to keep going all the way to the finish line.”