LONDON (AP) — The omicron variant is spreading so rapidly it has the potential to overwhelm Britain’s hospitals, highlighting the need to strengthen coronavirus restrictions and speed up the delivery of booster vaccine shots, the country’s health minister said Tuesday.
Omicron is so transmissible that even if it proves to be less severe than other variants, there is still likely to be a surge in hospital admissions if it goes unchecked, United Kingdom Health Secretary Sajid Javid told lawmakers.
His comments came as the government rushed to accelerate the national vaccination programme, with a goal of offering a booster dose to every adult by the end of December.
Lawmakers also voted Tuesday to approve tougher rules on mask-wearing in most indoor public places and mandatory COVID passes for nightclubs to slow the variant until more vaccinations can be delivered.
“This is a new national mission,” Javid said.
“A race between the virus and the vaccine to get as many people protected as possible.”
In another effort to speed up the booster program, UK health officials temporarily suspended the 15-minute observation period normally required for anyone receiving a Pfizer or Moderna shot.
Doctors had complained that the waiting period — designed to spot allergic reactions before patients left clinics — usually wasn’t necessary and resulted in healthy patients taking up valuable space at crowded vaccination centres.
Long lines formed outside vaccination centres across England for a second consecutive day on Tuesday as the National Health Service raced to meet the government’s target of delivering up to one million shots a day, more than double the recent average.
Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab said logistical issues in expanding the vaccination programme would diminish over the next week.
“It does take a few days just to make sure we get to a steady state,” he told the BBC. “We’ll keep straining every sinew to make sure we can reach that target.”
Vaccinations centres throughout the UK put 562,800 shots in arms on Monday, including 513,722 boosters.
Monday was the second-highest day for COVID-19 booster bookings in England, with more than 650,000 appointments scheduled, the NHS said.