After an utterly sleepless weekend worrying about whether i have been kicked of the list for a jab i thought i would post here.
Like many i have been effectively shielding since last March, and as I live alone this has not been easy at times. Being on a combi of the highest fostair dose, montelukast and a range of allergy meds i missed out on qualifying for shielding by 1 dose of prednisonole. Following the advice of docs and also the letter by the head of respiratory posted here i stayed home and have been happy to do so. My limited interactions with the world has meant less need for asthma interventions this year ( although my lungs feel the pressure much more than normal when i go for longer walks / attempt hills which is not normal for me usually).
I have been counting down the days to the jab as part of group 6 (i am under 50 so dont qualify by age) and as i was so close to the threshold for group 4 thought this a forgone conclusion from the advice here and elsewhere. And them last week the news that it will not happen, i feel scared, frustrated and utterly helpless. Still from the science at real risk from long covid but effectively thrown under thenbus. How can this be right and when will i see my family and friends again?
I understand that the evidence evolves and great if this now says i am at no greater chance of mortality ( but what about hospital admissions and long term damage) but feel this sites message that the change in advice doesnt matter was unhelpful in tone going straight to agreeing with government spin rather than asking hard questions. Hopefully more info will follow but for now i just feel devestated
I know I am not alone in feeling this.
Written by
Pootle1973
To view profiles and participate in discussions please or .
Agree with you Pootle1973. I am in a similar position to you. I don’t qualify by age either but have been living as a hermit since March. Was holding out for group 6 but.... I think we just want clarity now
Hi. Most people with asthma are NOT at any greater risk than everyone else. People with severe asthma (you would have a shielding letter) are at greater risk and are group 4. We are still working with the vaccine experts to make sure people who aren’t severe asthma but might be at higher risk also get a vaccine as priority. We should have answers next week
Thanks kitty will be interesting to see that advice. Asthma covers a very wide range of seriousness but as someone who just missed out in qualifying for group 4 I feel ok being frustrated and concerned particularly as along with many others I have been strongly encouraged for a year to effectively shield even if we didn’t get a letter. I’m glad that the evidence is evolving but look forward to seeing it rather than trusting government spin on catagories. Currently severe asthma is in group 4 and 6 and what this means has been sought for months. I appreciate there is lots going on (and as someone working on a different aspect of the response know it’s frantic) but there are many many asthmatics worrying perhaps needlessly because of this confusion. At a very stressful time that is unnecessary. I wish you well.
Hi for my medication I was supposed to shield. My gp forgot about that. Asthma is a serious life threatening condition. All asthmatic people should get this vaccine
Hi Pootle1973, Just read the previous post you are referring to. I am very disappointed firstly for the official AsthmaUK reply, it tells us nothing more than most of us already know. Secondly there are some very valid and important questions asked, but not been addressed by AsthmaUK!
It certainly does look like AsthmaUK are spinning the government spin to appease other Asthmatic groups. If we are not included in the CEV group, well don’t worry you are all the same, you may be susceptible to serious illness, but you won’t die!
It will be interesting to hear when hospital admissions drop in age group vulnerability, how many have cv asthma as UIH, in intensive care, if we are bumped off group 6?
Hi i asthma is serious life threatening condition. We are at risk. I know alots of asthmatic people who had this virus and still suffering. Hi. Most people with asthma are NOT at any greater risk than everyone else. People with severe asthma (you would have a shielding letter) are at greater risk and are group 4. We are still working with the vaccine experts to make sure people who aren’t severe asthma but might be at higher risk also get a vaccine as priority. We should have answers next week from Dr andy
Hi Kitty thank you for your reply, are you with AsthmaUK? It is good that answers are being sort and will be fed back here on the site. As you can see there are a lot of anxious people, myself included, concerned they are being moved down or excluded from the group stages.
I notice you say ‘MOST people with Asthma are not at greater risk than anyone else’. This is quite stressful to keep hearing on this site that all asthmatics not on the CEV list are the same severity. Some of us are very close to the CEV list give or take one criteria. Our Drs know we are vulnerable and advise we should shield if we can, even though not on the official CEV list. How can a blanket ‘MOST not at risk’ apply to those just missing the list, but have had serious complications with other viruses in their medical history? It is hard to see the science behind this statement.
If your GP has advised you to shield then they should be able to add you to the CEV list;
“There are 2 ways you may be identified as clinically extremely vulnerable:
You have one or more of conditions listed below, or
Your clinician or GP has added you to the Shielded Patient List because, based on their clinical judgement, they deem to you be at higher risk of serious illness if you catch the virus”
“People with the following conditions are automatically deemed clinically extremely vulnerable:
...other people who have also been classed as clinically extremely vulnerable, based on clinical judgement and an assessment of their needs. GPs and hospital clinicians have been provided with guidance to support these decisions” ( gov.uk/government/publicati... )
I have no more info than what’s already been said but if your GP/con does think you’re vulnerable and need the jab in group 4 they can add you to the list.
Thank you for replying, I have been told by my Dr and Asthma Nurse 10 days ago I am in group 6. They have not informed me anything different.
Only on here have I have seen those not on CEV list may be moved off group 6.
I am due to speak to them both on Thursday and I will get clarification for me. I am not sure about the adding to CEV list if outside category though. In March last year I was told to shield, while waiting for the letter, there was a delay, the criteria was changed slightly and I found myself outside the list due to hospital admissions in 12 months. My Dr suggested I still shield if I can. He made no mention to me he could put me on the list anyway even if outside the criteria. Maybe he doesn’t realise this, I’ll ask him on Thursday. Thank you.
Thank you for the info, I take prednisolone several times a year when struggling with chest infections, not on them at the moment though, not going anywhere to catch anything.
I don't work for asthma UK. I am asthmatic person. I also fit into same category. I asked Dr Andy on twitter. We are vulnerable and atvrisk. Alots of asthmatic people had covid and still suffering.
Asthma UK are not deciding any groups or vulnerability or vaccine priority. They are simply passing on the information as they receive it from the Department of Health (as they have done since last March) and, currently, trying to sort out the mess caused by the confusing criteria set out by the Dept of Health. But they cannot force people to reply to them and can't give information to people on here until they have it.
Not sure why you have replied to me with this? I have never said or implied they are? I am very aware who makes these decisions.
However AsthmaUK are our voice? If so why are they going with the government line that Most asthmatics are no more at risk than anybody else? Where have they got this information from and where is the data to back it up? We all know here that asthma is a blanket term a syndrome. So it is concerning that those outside the CEV group are now lumped together in a neat little box!
Could it be that the government want asthmatics removed from the vulnerable groups for vaccination, because they are under pressure to meet published vaccination targets and this is an easy political way to remove a large group from the list?
Because that's how it came across in your reply to Kitty (the one where you asked her if she worked for Asthma UK). Apologies for misinterpreting what you meant.
I can understand why loulou9000 asked Kitty if she was employed by AUK as that was the way she came across to me too at first.I personally think this CEV or None CEV is create divisions where there shouldn’t be any as it’s a fine line between the 2.
I myself was told by my dr that I was high risk but my asthma nurse said I don’t come under CEV because although I’m on the highest combo of meds my dr can prescribe and have emergency preds too I’m well controlled
I am in a very similar boat and completely agree with you. I am now concerned that if I am not put into a priority group (and so far I have been told I won't be) that my employer will start questioning my level of risk and take me off risk assessment, meaning, as I work in a school I won't even be able to wear a mask in the classroom 😳.
Your employer can’t just take you off a risk assessment. They can review your risk assessment (&can at any time) but can’t just delete it. During review if you not happy with way is going or any possible outcome ask for referral to occupational health. Risk assessment shouldn’t be changed before that happens. It probably would be a reasonable outcome anyway to have a referral to occupational health to ensure you get any support required at work.
As you have a medical condition you should have had an occupational health review by a qualified practitioner, which is specific to you with regards to the risks posed by covid in the workplace. A risk assessment is very different, in that a competent person can carry them out and they are looking at the workplace not individual staff members.
A occupational health practitioner will recommend reasonable adjustments for the staff member to the employer, who should implement the recommendations as long as they are reasonable.
This is exactly my position. I’m teaching from home as I’m assessed as high risk (initially shielding but no letter as the criteria changed). Waiting for the vaccine isn’t a problem if I am at home. The issue is that my school is likely to decide I am no longer high risk if I’m not a priority for the vaccine.
I agree- we'll understand if it's bad news, we know AUK can't win them all but would rather they acknowledge our concerns than declare it "good news", they should be on our side even if that means they can't spin the outcome as a victory. I would find something like "We understand your concerns for your long term health but right now the focus has to be on those groups at highest risk of actually dying..." far more reassuring than a blunt (and inaccurate) "No you're not at risk"!
I agree with you poodle. AsthmaUK are usually good at challenging views on behalf of asthmatics but here they seem to be just rolling over and getting their tummies tickled!!
In these days where most GPs only know the most demanding or seriously ill patients, I don’t think we can rely upon them to put asthmatics on a list. That’s just ridiculous.
There is a huge variation of asthma severity. In addition, someone who is controlled now may not be in a months time.
For example, I’m ok now but once pollen levels start rising control starts to fall away. It could be that someone who is well controlled gets COVID and the asthma is triggered , big time, by it. Whereas others maybe ok.
The problem is that asthma is unpredictable. The statistics may say we’re generally ok. But stats don’t always tell the whole story.
IMHO, they just need to slice up the population and we’re a big chunk. Much easier to ignore the obvious medical facts and shove us to the back of the queue.
Why Asthma UK are putting up with it is beyond me 🤯🤯
I have been told by my asthma nurse the same informations as stated above, that recent studies have shown asthmatics are of no greater risk than general population. As such, vaccination is likely to be on age basis which puts me personally out of all groups.I have not shielded, or been told to shield, and my meds I think are 1 pred course outside of recent shielding and perhaps should have been shielded in March due to Spiriva.... but anyway.....
The skeptic in me does think that although the new evidence suggests asthmatics are lower risk than initially predicted (great news) there are also issues surrounding vaccine supply due to the EU squabbles and potentially vaccine being diverted to other third world countries to support them - so, having the millions of asthmatics in group 6 could well strain finite supplies meaning their vaccination targets are missed. So, personally I think it’s a real possibility the gov won’t change their stance and ‘non CEV’ asthmatics will stay pushed out of group 6 as data suggests lower than initial predicted risk and they want to meet their vaccination targets.
Sad state of affairs and is causing a lot of stress to some, but I’ve resided myself to being ‘bottom of the pile’ on this xx
I agree, it is very confusing and frustrating. My asthma is usually fairly well controlled but any chest infection triggers a flare which takes time and steroids to get back on top of. I have managed to avoid a chest infection this year which means my use of pred is low, probably as a result of all the precautions I am taking to avoid Covid, I did end up in hospital for a couple of days though back in September with a bad flare for no apparent reason, which they decided was probably allergy related. At that point I was told I needed to be extremely careful to avoid Covid and they actually sent me home from hospital quicker than they normally would to avoid risk. Now, as my asthma is not classed as ‘severe’, it looks like we are being told that we are not at any more risk than anyone else. It doesn’t add up.
I would query why hospital consultants have not questioned the change in status of asthmatics for the covid jab. I imagine nearly all of us have problems getting rid of any viral infection, meaning courses of prednisolone etc. One of the local medical centres had a Q & A session on facebook and I asked about group 6 and they said it was now only severe asthmatics and that it also looked as if we were not going to get the annual flu jab either.
No flu jab would be asking for serious trouble. There’s plenty of evidence that that can hit asthmatics hard!
I completely agree with this! It seems that we have just totally been forgotten about and not right at all! I think there needs to be proper clear evidence actually shown because I don't believe a word of it! People have different triggers, levels of control, medications, and statements like 'most asthmatics' just doesn't cut it because no asthmatic is the same as another! So how they can justify this is beyond me! It does too make me wonder if we will be cut from the flu vaccine too! I really hope this is being continually pushed and reviewed promptly and not just accepted because it isn't right! Stay safe everyone x
It’s common sense that the fact that most asthmatics are are no greater risk of catching Covid is because we’ve all be so very careful over the last year, especially given the advice that came out last March when we the first lockdown happened.
I think a over posters are right- there were far more asthmatics than the government realised.
If the medics say asthmatics are at no greater risk than the general population if they catch Covid, I would have thought that was good news. I was surprised that permanent Atrial Fibrillation did not push me up the vaccination groups, which I have as well as asthma, and lymphoedema in my lower legs It was none of these medical conditions which put me in whatever group I am in, but my age. I had the AZ Oxford jab a few days ago.
One of the problems with asthma medications and Atrial Fibrillation treatment is trying to measure how effective it is. I don't take beta blockers because I've had very rare side effects which have landed me in hospital
For Atrial Fibrillation I take only an AntiCoagulant, because there's no medication which will improve my condition.
For asthma I use a strong inhaler, Duoresp spiromax 320/9, two puffs x 2 a day , (2 inhalers a month) and an occasional reliever inhaler, and fortunately for me it works. Once or twice a year I may get an infection and then it's prednisolone plus antibiotics
My asthma has not always been controlled and I know how debilitating that is when it's not controlled. But it's extremely difficult to determine what group an asthmatic should be in solely on the medication they use.
You are not the only one. According to a programme on the tv Saturday morning . All asthmatics who are moderate or severe and was told to stay home from their own doctor in the first lockdown , The doctor on tv said all these asthmatics are classed as shielding which makes them CEV and should have been vaccinated with the 70is groups. I was 60 in December and I have just again phoned the 119 , and was told that my GP has not registered me has shielding. I guess a lot of us have got rotten GPs . Best about things my asthma is more serious than my sisters is . And also puts me in hospital. My sister only has winter asthma and is getting her covid vaccination tom. She lives in West Yorkshire ,I'm in South Yorkshire. I can't understand why the JCVI think that asthmatic people are not at risk . When asthma affects the airways and lungs , and so does covid. We are dealing with idiot doctors who thinks asthma patients should be punished yet again.
Content on HealthUnlocked does not replace the relationship between you and doctors or other healthcare professionals nor the advice you receive from them.
Never delay seeking advice or dialling emergency services because of something that you have read on HealthUnlocked.
Am I in the vulnerable group 
When will asthmatics get COVID vaccine?
Another Shielding Update from AUK
