Can you pay to have your second Covid vaccine dose sooner?

Boris Johnson’s announcement on Monday that Britain is on course to complete its roadmap out of lockdown on 19 July saw the prime minister draw a line under social distancing and compulsory mask-wearing, paving the way for employees to return to offices and public venues to abandon capacity limits despite rising Covid-19 case numbers.

The prime minister insisted during his Downing Street press conference that we must “learn to live with” Covid and that it is a case of “now or never” on reopening, even though cases are forecast to hit 50,000 a day by the time restrictions are lifted and 100,000 later this summer, according to the British Medical Association, as new variants continue to emerge.

Undeterred by the scepticism of a number of prominent scientific advisers, Mr Johnson said it was time to “move to a different regime” for those who have had both doses of the vaccine, also hinting that quarantine requirements for travellers returning from amber list destinations could soon be scrapped in favour of testing if they have had both doses of a coronavirus vaccine at least two weeks prior to departure.

Travellers from France, Spain and Greece are expected to be exempted from the current rules, with an announcement expected later this week and The Daily Mail and The Times already reporting that new measures could begin as soon as 19 July.

Mr Johnson’s remarks were followed on Tuesday by new health secretary Sajid Javid announcing that those who have already had both of their jabs will no longer be required to self-isolate in the event that they come into contact with someone who has tested positive for Covid as of 16 August.

Under the existing rules, if a person is alerted by the NHS app, or called by contact tracers after coming into contact with a positive case, they must isolate at home for a period of up to 10 days.

As part of the new “risk-based approach”, Mr Javid told his fellow ministers in the House of Commons that instead of having to undergo quarantine, those concerned will be encouraged to take a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) test “as soon as possible” to provide certainty.

He also made clear that anyone who tests positive themselves will still have to self-isolate “whether they have had the jab or not.”

“This new approach means we can manage the virus in a way that is proportionate to the pandemic while maintaining the freedoms that are so important to us all,” Mr Javid said.

In a bid to encourage foreign travel, Heathrow Airport also said on Wednesday that it would fast-track the double-jabbed through immigration.

“This pilot will allow us to show that pre-departure and arrival checks of vaccination status can be carried out safely at check in, so that fully-vaccinated passengers can avoid quarantine from 19 July,” said John Holland-Kaye, the airport’s chief executive.

All of which amounts to clear benefits beginning to emerge for people who have had both jabs, meaning it is likely that many will become impatient to receive their second dose in order to show it off on their NHS app and wave goodbye to self-isolation and holiday quarantining.

While you cannot pay to have your current booking brought forward, Mr Johnson did announce in his address on Monday that the gap between first and second jabs for the under-40s will be shortened from 12 weeks to eight to ensure a greater proportion of the adult population gets inoculated sooner, with one eye on winter flu season looming in the not-too-distant future.

Speaking in the Commons on Tuesday, Mr Javid reiterated: “Eighty-six per cent of UK adults have had at least one jab and 64 per cent have had two. We are reinforcing our vaccine wall of defence further still. I can tell the House that we are reducing the dose interval for under-40s from 12 weeks to eight. Which will mean that every adult should have had the chance to be doubled jabbed by mid-September.”

That means that those people within the appropriate age bracket who have already had one jab and have an appointment booked for their second should be able to re-book to bring it forward.

Mark Ford, an IT professional working on NHS Digital’s vaccine booking service, has previously tweeted his advice on the subject, advising people to check availability before cancelling their existing appointment in favour of a new one.

Two jabs still might not mean the end of vaccine appointments, however, with the government currently weighing the prospect of offering booster doses to older people this autumn to further bolster immunity.

Mr Johnson’s plans could also change again as the situation develops, with a confirmation announcement on the decision to press ahead with the final stage of unlocking due on Monday 12 July.

As always with this pandemic, very little is certain.