By Lucy Caulkett-
Mandatory vaccines for NHS and social care workers are set to be scrapped, it was revealed last night. amid warnings of crippling staff shortages if the plan was imposed on NHS and social care workers.
The requirement for care home staff to have two doses came into force last November, with one charity accusing the Government of using the sector as “the trial run for the NHS”.
Under the new rules, care home staff, who were previously mandated to be double jabbed or lose their jobs in November, are expected to return to work in the sector. After the mandatory vaccination laws came into effect last year, around 40,000 people lost their jobs.
Care home bosses said the government’s indecisiveness over mandatory jabs had devastated their workforce and brought providers to their knees. Nhs staff insistent on not being vaccinated have already left the Nhs in multiple numbers, but many key workers who were against vaccination opted to be vaccinated to keep their jobs, and save the hassle of being jobless in search of employment.
Latest figures from NHS England show that 127,515 NHS and domiciliary care staff working in registered settings had not had a first dose of a Covid-19 vaccine as of January 23.
The mandatory jab requirement was meant to come into force on April 1, meaning this Thursday would have been the last day staff could book in for a jab. On Friday those without jabs would have faced dismissal warnings and been asked to work out their notice periods until March 31.
Ministers are now set to scrap the plan to prevent the NHS from sacking an estimated 80,000 staff who remain unvaccinated. One in 20 NHS staff – an estimated 75,000 people, remain unvaccinated.
The Royal College of GPs, the Royal College of Nursing, the Royal College of Midwives had previously called on the Government to extend the deadline to prevent mass shortages in the health service.
Martin Marshall, Chairman of the Royal College of GPs, said compulsory vaccination for health professionals was ‘not the right way forward’.
Care home bosses said the government’s indecision over mandatory jabs had ‘devastated our workforce and brought providers to their knees’.
Chris Hopson, chief executive of NHS Providers, said: ‘There were always two risks to manage here: the risk of Covid cross-infection in healthcare settings and the consequences of losing staff if significant numbers choose not to be vaccinated.’