I have just received a shielding letter (TODAY) andI am I’m a bit pissed off.

[RickiTarr]

Presumably as a result of the CEV list doubling last week.

I got my invitation for the vaccination a couple of days ago, also presumably due to being reclassified.

Luckily I did my own amateur risk assessment last March and decided, because I have several mild to moderate health conditions, including asthma, and because I’m slightly overweight, to shield informally.

So I have been doing this since March 2020, only going out for medical appointments and exercise, WFH, all of that.

Now in mid Feb 2021 I finally get a letter saying “Actually yes we’ve worked out you’re CEV and not just CV, so shield until March 31st 2021.”

At first I was unmoved by this, but over the last couple of hours I’ve started thinking that they really should have been able to do this maths earlier.

Then it struck me that some people will have died because of this and this was all rather obvious.

AIBU to be a little bit pissed off with the government? (The letter is from the Department of Health & Social Care, and the NHS - both logos are at the top - but not from local NHS- this is governmental.)

For people who’re confused over what sort of asthma goes where (as it were), the criteria for receiving a vaccination in Group 6 are:
^An individual with a more severe case of asthma may have been included in the Clinically Extremely Vulnerable group, in which case they will be vaccinated in group 4.
People with asthma which requires continuous or repeated use of systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission, will be vaccinated in priority group 6.
This will include:
• anyone who has ever had an emergency asthma admission or;
• those who have an asthma diagnosis and have had 3 prescriptions for oral steroids over a 3-month period (each prescription must fall within separate
individual month windows), as an indication of repeated or continuous oral steroids^

(Just to be clear, admission means going to a ward or unit; A&E visits don’t count - which you may all look at & think “well obviously that’s what admission means”; but Asthma UK has had to clarify c 11 billionty times on Twitter, so...)

I understand it being frustrating OP; but tbh the government could just have made the decision not to update the list at all. Now that would have been utterly reprehensible, but I can just imagine the sort of arguments they’d make for not refining the list given the vaccination rollout

There’s [the 4th of] a [series of] thread[s] over in chat for people who’re shielding - wee bit quiet just now, but everyone is welcome.

I have my vaccination tomorrow, I've not been sheliding but I'm a don't go out unless necessary person anyway. DH is older and has a heart condition but he's not been called up yet

@Dimsummummy

I also received one today and am also miffed! I caught covid on 13th March, I was really poorly and had paramedics attend (although there threshold was higher to take people in then- and I had 2 of the 3 ((as we now know)) indicators of severe illness) i then came down with the gastric version 2 weeks after the respiratory symptoms ( on my 40th no doubt!). I was bed ridden for months and house ridden for almost 6 months. Doctor diagnosed long covid. I still have a couple of mild conditions bought on by the covid. Anyway.. thanks to Rishi’s self employed grant rules fine print, I was unable to claim any of the 3 grants.. I was also unable to claim UC as my partner works and just pips the limit when his annual on call is added on. We however have separate finances, as we have pre ‘is’ financial commitments- not least our own separate children, and as 2 working age people with no reason not to (until covid) this worked well. We have scrimped through with me going back to work ( physical job) before I was really ready otherwise I was going down and taking my kids and my partner and his with me! I have largely made my peace with this (still peed that for the last 11 years I’ve been self employed apart form when student and 5 months in an employed teaching role - the latter being the reason I can’t claim the self employed grant!!)

So the reason I am miffed is, this letter entitled me to ESA ... for 5 weeks 😠 I mean you have to 😂.. I was ill for 6 months, genuinely on 2 occasions had said my ‘mental goodbyes’ nearly destitute, still nit but full client base due to other people’s covid restrictions/experiences and my salve is ( weeks ESA.

I just texted my oh and said it’s like being attacked by a shark and getting kissed better by an ant 🤷‍♀️.

Sorry for rant, I get it’s not rational and hindsight is a glorious thing, but it still stings !

That’s the sort of thing I was imagining, with bells on. You poor thing.

How are you feeling now? Will you claim the five weeks’ worth of ESA? Might be worth it. They might extend the March 31 deadline for shielding.

There’s [the 4th of] a [series of] thread[s] over in chat for people who’re shielding - wee bit quiet just now, but everyone is welcome.

Oh I didn’t know that. Would you mind posting the link here for us newly confined to barracks people?

@RickiTarr I’m not sure whether to claim the 5 weeks or not.. I’ve become so cynical that I’m convinced that it might reverse my right to claim the new self employed grant coming out on 3rd March 🤔.
I’m much, much better but have a thyroid condition and chronic sinusitis/post nasal drip and GERD... plus I’m now 2 stone heavier thanks to the lack of movement.
Think I’m CEV purely because I had gestational diabetes 12 years ago (doctors don’t know I’m now fat 😂 as was a size 8 pre covid 😞)

AIBU to be a little bit pissed off with the government? (The letter is from the Department of Health & Social Care, and the NHS - both logos are at the top - but not from local NHS- this is governmental.)

Ah, the letter from Matt and Bob. I've had a few of these now and the latest one today.

I've placed it in the "circular filing cabinet".

I got one this week too😳

They put me on the list even though I’m 28 and have zero health conditions, I’m also a healthy weight. I received a letter and email out of the blue so phoned the GP up straight away to ask to be removed. They weren’t entirely sure how or why I’d ended up on the list either, the GP thought it might be because I had GD in my last pregnancy but seems a bit farfetched. Just the government relying on faulty algorithms again I guess.

I am an awful eejit sometimes, sorry - Shielding Chat Thread

I received the letter too, I am main carer for 3 kids (IE I do the school runs) and they are going back to school on 8th March. School runs can be my "daily exercise"

I know two T1 diabetics who have received a shielding letter in the last week.

Both only have diabetes as a risk factor and both well controlled.

I’m not entirely sure why diabetes wasn’t on the list in the first place tbh!

The analysis underpinning this was only completed and published a few months ago- see www.bmj.com/content/371/bmj.m3731. That’s the issue with novel infectious agents, it takes time to learn about them and in this case was only through watching how infections developed. 🤷‍♀️The real life modelling against the UK NHS dataset then took time as you’d expect, but it is great that it means you get prioritised for the vaccine

YABVU.

You literally just got the shielding letter because, AS IT SAYS IN THE LETTER, that's the easiest way for them to prioritise people in group 6 for the vaccine. Your risk has not changed since last week. If you haven't been shielding before, you don't need to start shielding now, AS IT SAYS IN THE LETTER - you can make your own informed decision.

And, you know, the NHS has been quite busy the last few months. Get over yourself.

“Actually yes we’ve worked out you’re CEV and not just CV, so shield until March 31st 2021.”

This is literally the opposite of what the letter says.

Thanks @MarieVanGoethem !

[quote Dimsummummy]@RickiTarr I’m not sure whether to claim the 5 weeks or not.. I’ve become so cynical that I’m convinced that it might reverse my right to claim the new self employed grant coming out on 3rd March 🤔.
I’m much, much better but have a thyroid condition and chronic sinusitis/post nasal drip and GERD... plus I’m now 2 stone heavier thanks to the lack of movement.
Think I’m CEV purely because I had gestational diabetes 12 years ago (doctors don’t know I’m now fat 😂 as was a size 8 pre covid 😞)[/quote]
So sounds like long Covid? I wish you better soon.

It is strange that think they know all our weights, isn’t it?? I’ve only ever been weighed when I was pregnant or when I moved surgery. Maybe heavier people are more likely to weighed at the GP’s? Not a perfect methodology, though.

@bridgetreilly

“Actually yes we’ve worked out you’re CEV and not just CV, so shield until March 31st 2021.”

This is literally the opposite of what the letter says.

How so? It’s definitely what mine says.

This is what the letter actually says:

We are writing to you because new research commissioned by the Chief Medical Officer has recently enabled us to identify people who may be at increased risk of becoming seriously unwell from coronavirus. This is because of a combination of their individual characteristics and their underlying health conditions.

This research means we want to provide vaccination more quickly for you, and also offer further advice and support.

This letter explains why you have been included in this group and what advice and support is available to you. The easiest way for us to ensure your early vaccination is to include you within the list of people who are clinically extremely vulnerable (also known as the shielded patient list).

1. You are more likely than the average population to get Covid.
2. So we want to prioritise you getting the vaccine.
3. The easiest way to do this is to add you to the CEV list.

You may feel that at this stage of the pandemic, when rates of infection overall are declining, the advice is not relevant to you. However, we think it is important that you are aware of your risk status and of the support available to you, both now and for any future changes in the pandemic. This means that you can make an informed choice yourself.

There follows the advice about shielding. Note that you are NOT told to shield, you are told to make an informed choice yourself.

The Government is always learning more about coronavirus and the things that might contribute to people becoming seriously ill. They asked a team of experts to look at data from the first wave of the pandemic, to get a better understanding of the things that may mean someone is at a high risk of catching and becoming seriously unwell with coronavirus.

Why you were not previously on the list: they have done new research.

This is advice and not the law, so you can choose what action you take whilst continuing to follow all the basic rules that we all need to observe through the pandemic.

Do I have to shield? No. You can choose.

This is what the letter actually says:....

To be fair, unless you are the OP, you have no idea what her letter said.

Do I have to shield? No. You can choose.

Agree. It's always been the case from day 1. You don't have to if you don't want to, it's not a rule.

There follows the advice about shielding. Note that you are NOT told to shield, you are told to make an informed choice yourself.

Even if that were the full story, you have just the phrase “literally the opposite” wildly inaccurately.

Each paragraph of detailed shielding advice begins “You are advised not to go to the shops..” & “You are strongly advised not to go to the pharmacy” etc. Those are direct quotes.

So I don’t think I am being misleading when I summarise by saying that the letter is “telling me” I should shield.

It’s certainly not doing “literally the opposite” of telling me to shield.

@PhilCornwall1

Do I have to shield? No. You can choose.

Agree. It's always been the case from day 1. You don't have to if you don't want to, it's not a rule.

Yes of course it’s not mandatory or house arrest, but “strongly advise” is pretty much telling me to, isn’t it?

I don’t always do as I’m told. Lots of people don’t, but I don’t think I’ve misled anyone in what I’ve written.

YABY, take responsibility for your own health. My elderly, asthmatic mum has been shielding since March 2020, she didn't need a letter to understand this was best. She's still shielding after her jab.

This just screams 'I'm special, take extra care of me.'

YABY, take responsibility for your own health. My elderly, asthmatic mum has been shielding since March 2020, she didn't need a letter to understand this was best. She's still shielding after her jab.

That’s literally what I’ve been doing for 11 months. You need to read the OP as well as the title.

It seems very random and different for different areas, I have uncontrolled asthma and severe allergies and take transplant medication for my immune system. I was initially told to shield, then told not to.

I was told on Friday my letter was in the post by my GP and then yesterday the practice manager said I do not qualify for the vaccine.