Vulnerable staying in until level1

[wishing3]

No real surprise, but kind of surprised it's not more of a focus in the papers that I've seen. The new colour coded 'ranking' for corona say 'vulnerable to remain home' until we reach level 1, which is 'only likely with vaccine'.
This could mean the shielders i.e. the most vulnerable, or the rung down (over 70s etc). How have others interpreted this? Why bother sending the extension letter saying to shield for another 12 weeks? It's clearly going to be frickin' ages- maybe even a year or more. Ugh.

Definitely won't be a blanket over 70's, because that is clearly not applicable to most people in their 70's, and maybe not even those who are in their 80's and 90's and still essentially "fit", of whom I know a number, and clearly view it as their own choice to assess their own risk.

I suggest it will mean those who are medically "extremely vulnerable", the list of which I hear is being revised, following more data of whom is actually most at risk.

There are many vulnerable people at work at the moment, so there is no way we are being kept at home until level 1.

Yes, I guess it’s for people who are shielding then.

Still would have expected this to be more of a focus in the news as this has not been explicitly been said before (though I’m sure we were largely expecting it).

With rare conditions I guess it could still be a very long time before done revisions are made. With relatively few people with these conditions there won’t really be any meaningful evidence/stats either way.

Shielding was extended until 30th June.
Oxford have started vaccine production in anticipation that their trial is successful they've said they will know by the middle of June so it is tenuously conceivable that by the end of June the first tranche of vaccines could be rolled out for key workere and the shielded

Surely it should be up to them, and may depend on why they're vulnerable. A terminal cancer patient, for instance, might rather take the risk if it means better quality of life and being able to see friends and family. Someone with a serious condition which is not likely to be fatal might decide to stay in until there's a vaccine. Both these people should be supported in their decisions, so we don't criticize and blame, still less fine and arrest, the first person, and we carry on making sure the second person can get everything they need without going out.

But I'm not hopeful of common sense of this type prevailing.

It sucks for the people who are shielding, but imagine the fallout if the government told them they didn't have to any more and then some of them went on to become infected. So it can't really be anything but level 1 for them, really. As a PP said, everyone is free to make their own choices though.

I have MS which makes me vulnerable and immunosuppressants as treatment which pushes me into the Shielding group. I'm okay about working from home and kind of knew it was coming but when DC goes back to school it seems pointless keeping everyone out of my home for example my partner.

I'd personally love to have a test which was as quick as a pregnancy test !

The shielding letter does say if you have limited life expectancy it may be shielding isn't appropriate for you..
I don't know
My feeling is by June I'll probably be as safe as I was in February when no one was talking about any of these precautions.

Yes, I reckon if the numbers are pretty low by whatever point a number of the shielder crew (my partner included) might start to go out.

I had been shielding, after receiving the letter. I had a phone call from a nurse, on Thursday, to say the guidelines have changed and I am no longer in the shielding group as the criteria have changed for asthma. I am assuming a lot of people have had/are going to have that call and maybe the guidelines for other groups have changed too.

If there is no financial help for shielding workers, they will have the choice of returning to work and risking death or staying home and dealing with financial ruin.

What Yorkshire said. I can't see how the government are going to foot the bill for shielding employees to continue to recieve their normal income for a year, 2 years, however long it takes for mass vaccination. Therefore many will stop shielding out of necessity when they have to return to work. And as a lot of PP said, others will have family members back out to work or school so may deem it pointless to stay in any more if they're not being shielded anyway by remaining in close contact with other people who arne't shielding.

I also got a shielding letter/text. I've since spoken to my specialist Nurse whose opinion is that I'm not particularly at risk and no more than her.

They've been saying that all people aren't equal. You could be a fit 75 year old and your chances are better than someone 40+. So they are changing their advice.

It's been clearly stated that there may not be a vaccine for the over 65's. The antibody tests and more knowledge on immunity, will make the difference for many.

DH got a shielding letter completely in error! He was a stem cell donor a few years ago, and the hospital where he donated, sent shielding letters to absolutely every person on their records . Obviously we knew straight away it was an error and he informed them, and they later sent out a letter confirming it was an error and apologising. But what a silly thing for them to do as other people may have panicked.

If we could emigrate we would, looked in to it a LOT but seems impossible

British born and bread but am lucky enough to be well travelled and felt more at home in other countries

Ignore that wrong thread