NHS to send Covid-19 vaccine reminders by text in England

Messages will be sent to almost 400,000 people aged 55 and over and 40,000 unpaid carers, with a weblink so they can reserve an appointment at one of more than 300 vaccination centres or pharmacies across England.

ollow-up texts will be sent every two to three weeks to those who do not take up the offer. The new text message will be sent using the Government’s secure Notify service and will show as being sent from ‘NHSvaccine’. The system will be rolled out to lower priority groups in the future if the trial is successful. Some hospital and GP-led vaccination services already use text messages to invite people for their jab. Anyone who would prefer not to travel to a mass vaccination centre or pharmacy can choose to wait to be invited by their GP. Matt Hancock, health and social care secretary, said: “Our vaccination rollout is moving at a blistering speed and these text alerts will increase the pace by making it even easier for people to get booked in for their jab. “Thanks to the tireless work of our NHS staff, two in every five adults now have some degree of protection. “Vaccines are the best way of securing our long-term freedom and will save thousands of lives, so I urge everyone to take up the offer when the text pings into their phone.”