Labour to deny six million pensioners Covid jabs this winter
The rollout will be restricted to only the most vulnerable groups, and the vaccines will not be offered to NHS and care workers.
Only people over the age of 75, those living in care homes and others who are immunosuppressed will be eligible for free vaccines.
'Reckless and short-term'
The changes mean about six million pensioners between the age of 65 and 74 will not be offered free jabs.
The decision from ministers follows recommendations from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) to restrict jabs to those most vulnerable to serious outcomes from infection.
But pharmacists said the decision was 'reckless' and 'short-term' and could lead to increasing numbers of patients needing hospital care this winter.
Dr Leyla Hannbeck, chief executive of the Independent Pharmacies Association, said: 'This is hugely concerning, a reckless decision.'
She said it was 'madness' for the UK to restrict jabs, with Germany and the United States among countries still recommending the vaccines for all pensioners.
'To deny millions of seniors their Covid jab this year is to take an unacceptable risk with patient health and risks producing a winter crisis the NHS simply won't be able to cope with,' Dr Hannbeck said.
A Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) spokesperson said: 'This decision is based on expert advice from the JCVI, which continuously monitor and evaluate emerging scientific evidence on COVID-19 vaccines.
'The autumn 2025 vaccination programme will target people who are at the highest risk of serious illness to protect the most vulnerable. We encourage anyone who is eligible for COVID-19 vaccination to come forward for vaccination this autumn.'
The decision means frontline NHS workers and care staff will no longer be offered free jabs.
The DHSC said: 'In the current era of high population immunity to COVID-19, additional COVID-19 doses provide very limited, if any, protection against infection and any subsequent onward transmission of infection.'
It said that high population immunity meant vaccination was likely to only have a very limited impact on reducing staff sickness absence.
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