To be gutted re vaccine groups and asthma?

[1starwars2]

I have been generally positive and very careful throughout, but I feel really thrown by the news that asthmatics have been removed from group 6 of the Covid vaccine schedule.
I have been literally checking my phone for a text invite as our local surgery announced they were starting vaccinating grp 6 and sending out text invites.
Now I will not be in any of the first 9 groups, and my asthma has been crap for the last year.
A lot of asthmatics have been voluntarily shielding, and looking forward to vaccination and it seems a bit unfair to kick us out of the vaccination schedule now.
I would like to be pleased that it looks like asthmatics might be at no more risk of dying, but I don't feel that would apply to me, and am surprised at those findings.
I generally develop a chest infection, (I have had pneumonia and pleurisy in the last few years) with any cold. I am scared of covid, and it's a genuine fear not anxiety.

I take a powder steroid inhaler daily, have a very high BMI and am an unpaid carer to my two kids with learning disabilities. I hope I get a letter soon. Is there anyway to ask?

Although I should say it sounds like you may have severe asthma if you have had pneumonia and pleurisy so you may well get the jab on that basis.

berry You can ask your GP surgery - most are aware of what groups their patients are in now.

@berryfull

I take a powder steroid inhaler daily, have a very high BMI and am an unpaid carer to my two kids with learning disabilities. I hope I get a letter soon. Is there anyway to ask?

If you BMI is over 40 you are definitely in group 6. Our practice is vaccinating group 6 this week and has enough vaccine to do everyone in the group this week. Does your gp practice have a facebook page they may give updates there? You could trying calling but they have said not to. Also look out for a text as that is how I was informed to call and book.

@berryfull

I take a powder steroid inhaler daily, have a very high BMI and am an unpaid carer to my two kids with learning disabilities. I hope I get a letter soon. Is there anyway to ask?

@berryfull I'd contact your GP if you can. I called mine today who confirmed I was in group 6 ( I wasn't expecting it!) . She was lovely and very reassuring

My DP has chronic asthma and suffers badly with it all year round, very reliant on inhalers and nebuliser! He caught Covid just before Christmas (off me), and was absolutely fine. Not going to lie it knocked the stuffing out of him, as it did me.

At no time did I feel like he was in danger or needed any help.
My sister is also chronic asthmatic (has been hospitalised numerous times over the years). She also had it about 2-3 weeks and again was absolutely fine.

I know this is not the case for everyone, bu i'm hoping it will help your fears a little.

@needadvice54321

When was this announced?

I spoke to my doctor at about 5pm today and she confirmed I'm in group 6 due to my asthma. Now concerned this isn't going to happen . I also have a stupidly high BMI and work in childcare . Gah I was so happy for a few hours!

It wasn’t really announced as such. I have been trying to raise awareness of this decision since late December, when it was first published.

My friends boyfriend is asthmatic and is furloughed atm so not working and he had his last week. Wasn't a pre planned thing they just phoned him and said can you be here within the hour

What people seem to be missing is the large number of people who have well controlled asthma until they don't. Which was me twice. Once an operating theatre was ready to reinflate my lung as my oxygen levels were so low they assumed it had collapsed. The other time I was in labour and the anaesthetists insisted on a x-Ray to rule out pulmonary embolism before progressing to emergency c-section. The second time I couldn't see what the fuss was about. Felt fine to me. How many asthmatics have had attacks hospitals would consider serious but we just deal with. Asthma is a poorly managed condition in this country. People belittle it. But look up how many it kills every year and be surprised.

Doesn’t make any sense whatsoever to me.

I thought it was great, if it shows we are less at risk

Yanbu OP. My asthma is well controlled with brown inhaler and a spacer and blue inhaler daily. I keep getting told I shouldn't use my blue inhaler at all, but I don't want to step up to fostiar which has some side effects from a combination that works without side effects.

The only thing that really kicks my asthma off and needs steroids for is when I am ill with anything above a heavy cold. So covid seems like a higher risk to a 43 year old fat lass (tho not fat enough for the vaccine) than a 43 year old fat lass without asthma.

I'd be pretty pissed off if they then swap to occupational vaccines. I don't see how a 20 year old council office worker is at greater risk than a 43 year old asthmatic with 2 dcs at school.

@inthevirtualwaitingroom yes that is the upside of this announcement.
Thank you to the ICU professional who said they haven't seen many asthmatics.
I will continue being extra careful, but DH is a key worker (food production) and hopefully my kids will be back at school soon.

What people seem to be missing is the large number of people who have well controlled asthma until they don't.

The point is this can be absolutely true but it does not mean Covid will exacerbate that. You may suffer terribly with your asthma but the statistical likelihood would be that your asthma does not mean you will get Covid any worse than a non asthmatic of a similar age/ethnicity/weight to you.

So covid seems like a higher risk to a 43 year old fat lass (tho not fat enough for the vaccine) than a 43 year old fat lass without asthma.

The thing is its actually more risk to a 43 year old fat lass with asthma than it is to a 43 year old thin lass with asthma so if you really want to protect yourself, focus on your overall health including your weight.

How old are you op. I'm 50 so will get in soon regardless off my asthma. But that's well controlled at present. They will get around to all adults soon and numbers are dropping 25% every week. There is no way that's down to lockdown alone as this isn't even a real lockdown like the first one It's all down to the vaccines.

@1starwars2

I have been generally positive and very careful throughout, but I feel really thrown by the news that asthmatics have been removed from group 6 of the Covid vaccine schedule. I have been literally checking my phone for a text invite as our local surgery announced they were starting vaccinating grp 6 and sending out text invites. Now I will not be in any of the first 9 groups, and my asthma has been crap for the last year. A lot of asthmatics have been voluntarily shielding, and looking forward to vaccination and it seems a bit unfair to kick us out of the vaccination schedule now. I would like to be pleased that it looks like asthmatics might be at no more risk of dying, but I don't feel that would apply to me, and am surprised at those findings. I generally develop a chest infection, (I have had pneumonia and pleurisy in the last few years) with any cold. I am scared of covid, and it's a genuine fear not anxiety.

Call your local pharmacies and see if they are prepared to give out any leftover vaccines at the end of the day. My pharmacy was and my husband and I got vaccinated at the weekend (both key workers but I don't think that mattered).

I am not surprised that people with quite mild asthma aren't a priority as they haven't been at more risk of severe covid so why should they be?
OP, if you feel that your asthma is quite severe (and it sounds like it might be if you have been admitted to hospital because of it), I would not assume that you will not get an appointment. Wait a couple weeks though as it will take a while for the surgeries to send out letters . If you don't get anything perhaps make an appointment to speak to someone in your surgery about it.

@Whattodoffs

My DP has chronic asthma and suffers badly with it all year round, very reliant on inhalers and nebuliser! He caught Covid just before Christmas (off me), and was absolutely fine. Not going to lie it knocked the stuffing out of him, as it did me. At no time did I feel like he was in danger or needed any help. My sister is also chronic asthmatic (has been hospitalised numerous times over the years). She also had it about 2-3 weeks and again was absolutely fine. I know this is not the case for everyone, bu i'm hoping it will help your fears a little.

Yes, I know people with asthma who were absolutely fine too. Covid isn't really a respiratory disease as originally thought but seems to have much more of an impact on the cardiovascular system so those with cardiovascular disease and diabetes are the ones at greater risk.

Everything I'm saying below excludes those asthmatics who were extremely clinically vulnerable and therefore shielding. They rightly had their vaccines in group 4.

I'm talking about asthmatics not ECV who are entitled to a free flu jab.

We're annoyed because:

• asthmatics have been told all along that they are clinically vulnerable to Covid and should take extra care
• asthmatics have been turned down as volunteer vaccinators due to our CV status
• back in December we were told every asthmatic entitled to the free flu jab would get a Covid vaccine in group 6
• days before group 6 was due to begin being vaccinated we have suddenly been removed from group 6
• there are very strict criteria to be in group 6 which excludes a lot of people who have a lot of asthma meds - for example those who take multiple add on treatments and frequent courses of steroids, you need 3 courses of steroids in a 3 month period so some people will have say 4 courses a year, just not close enough to qualify.
• there has been a lot of unclear guidance. Some GPs have therefore vaccinated some people with very mild asthma, for example people who occasionally use a ventolin reliever inhaler and have no preventer inhaler. Some GPs have refused vaccinations to people with a large number of asthma meds including add on treatments like combined inhalers and Montelukast. So the confusion and delays confirming the eligibility criteria has resulted in a post code lottery and whether you get a vaccine or not depends on your GP. Anyone who has ever had a hospital admission for asthma are allowed a vaccine but some have been turned down as their GP has decided only 'recent' admissions count.

There is evidence that asthmatics are more likely to develop long Covid which could have serious long term effects on our asthma and make us even more vulnerable to colds/flu/pneumonia in the future.

There is also evidence that asthmatics are more likely to be hospitalised with Covid and, if intubated, intubated for longer than people without asthma.

I know two asthmatics who have had Covid. One was hospitalised in ICU for weeks and the other is struggling with long Covid 11 months later. Both had relatively mild asthma and just took the standard brown preventer inhaler. So it's not like they had add on treatments like a combi preventer and long acting broncholidator plus Montelukast.

@NoIDontWatchLoveIsland

What people seem to be missing is the large number of people who have well controlled asthma until they don't.

The point is this can be absolutely true but it does not mean Covid will exacerbate that. You may suffer terribly with your asthma but the statistical likelihood would be that your asthma does not mean you will get Covid any worse than a non asthmatic of a similar age/ethnicity/weight to you.

Also, it is your responsibility to control your asthma and see your GP/asthma nurse if you feel it getting any worse. I have been in the group of asthmatics who have taken very poorly due to very poorly controlled asthma too and I have been given a severe telling off by my asthma nurse! If you have the condition then please don't make light of it. Your quality of life and treatment for your condition is very important, with or without Covid.

@CaffiSaliMali days before group 6 was due to begin being vaccinated we have suddenly been removed from group 6.

I agree with your sentiment but this isn’t correct. We were never in Group 6. The JCVI and Chapter 14a of the Green Book were published at the end of December and moderate asthmatics weren’t mentioned.

I contacted the JCVI, the DfH, Asthma U.K., everyone. JCVI confirmed to me in January that the decision was correct. I have been shouting into the wind about this for nearly two months now!

Op, I am a 49 yr old preschool teacher with asthma & M.E. & have been back at work since September. I have been wondering if I would have to wait for my age bracket or if I would be able to have it earlier. I was rung up at 8 o’clock this morning to invite me for my vaccination on Saturday. My 21 yr old son was phoned just before me. He has asthma too.

[quote AsthmaChecker]**@CaffiSaliMali* days before group 6 was due to begin being vaccinated we have suddenly been removed from group 6.*

I agree with your sentiment but this isn’t correct. We were never in Group 6. The JCVI and Chapter 14a of the Green Book were published at the end of December and moderate asthmatics weren’t mentioned.

I contacted the JCVI, the DfH, Asthma U.K., everyone. JCVI confirmed to me in January that the decision was correct. I have been shouting into the wind about this for nearly two months now![/quote]
We know now that the information DHSC gave Asthma UK was false. However, it was given to us in good faith in December so people did genuinely believe they were in group 6 and got a nasty shock at the weekend. Asthma UK specifically said that when JCVI green book said 'severe asthma' in group 6 they meant 'anyone with a preventer inhaler'. So a lot of people weren't aware of a potential issue until the last few days.

Someone at DHSC dropped a bollock giving Asthma UK false information. I think we are owed an apology.

there has been a lot of unclear guidance. Some GPs have therefore vaccinated some people with very mild asthma, for example people who occasionally use a ventolin reliever inhaler and have no preventer inhaler. Some GPs have refused vaccinations to people with a large number of asthma meds including add on treatments like combined inhalers and Montelukast. So the confusion and delays confirming the eligibility criteria has resulted in a post code lottery and whether you get a vaccine or not depends on your GP. Anyone who has ever had a hospital admission for asthma are allowed a vaccine but some have been turned down as their GP has decided only 'recent' admissions count.

You talk as if this has been going on for some time but they only officially started vaccinating people in group 6 yesterday and those with mild to moderate asthma have only just been removed from group 6 so how can this be?