When will people with MS get a Covid-19 vaccine?

The independent Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has approved the first Covid-19 vaccine, developed by Pfizer/BioNTech. This follows months of clinical trials and analysis of the data by experts at the MHRA who have concluded that the vaccine has met its strict standards of safety, quality and effectiveness. The vaccine will be made available through the NHS across the UK from next week.

But who will get it first, and where do people with MS fit into the priority list?

The Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations (JCVI) has published its advice for the priority groups to receive the vaccine. The order of priority is based on individual risk, and aims to protect the most vulnerable people and the health and social care systems. This means that the main criteria for this phase of the vaccination programme will be age. The older you are, the more you are at risk of serious illness and death from Covid-19.

Local authorities have some flexibility to ensure that vulnerable groups can be reached, for example black people or those belonging to an ethnic minority. This is the priority list published by the JCVI.

If you have no other underlying health conditions apart from MS, we understand that you would be offered a vaccination at priority level 6. This is because the list of underlying health conditions considered relevant by the JCVI includes chronic neurological disease. The list also includes people on some disease modifying drugs (DMDs) or long term use of steroids. If you are older than 64 you would be invited to be vaccinated earlier.

If you are considered extremely clinically vulnerable, and were asked to shield in the spring, then you are likely to be invited to be vaccinated at priority level 4. Pregnant women and children under 16 will not be included in this group because there is not enough safety data for this vaccine in these groups.

For more information on risk factors for severe disease with Covid-19, including underlying health conditions and the risks with specific DMDs, see our page on Coronavirus, Covid-19 and MS.

Is the vaccine safe and effective for me?

The safety data checked by the MHRA indicates that the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is safe and effective for the majority of adults, including older adults. This vaccine is not a live or altered virus, it uses a fragment of the coronavirus that cannot cause Covid-19 itself. There is not enough data on safety yet for pregnant women and children under 16. This does not mean that it is unsafe, and as soon as researchers have collected good data, the advice will be changed.

The Association of British Neurologists have previously advised that people taking Ocrevus or Lemtrada would need to discuss when to have their vaccine with their MS team. These DMDs can affect how well a vaccine will work for you, and the timing of your infusions and the vaccine will be important.

How will I get the vaccine?

You will be contacted about your proposed vaccination, and invited to visit a local GP surgery, hospital hub or other location. In some areas, venues like conference centres and sports stadia may be used. The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine is given as two injections, 21 days apart. If other vaccines are approved, they may have slightly different dosing schedules.

The earliest vaccinations in the UK may be from Tuesday 8th December, but there may be delays in getting the delivery systems set up and getting supplies of vaccine around the country. All four nations of the UK will be getting supplies immediately. We do not yet know how long it will take to move through the priority levels.

If you think you have already had Covid-19, you will still be invited to be vaccinated, as the protection from the vaccine may be higher than from natural exposure, and last longer.

When will I be protected from Covid-19?

If you are severely immunocompromised, the vaccine may not give you full protection, and you may still need to be cocooned from exposure to others for a while to reduce your risk. If you have had your spleen removed, have had cancer, an organ or bone marrow transplant or are taking an immune-suppressing medicine, you might be considered severely immunocompromised. The guidance published suggests that your household contacts could be offered a vaccination to protect you if you are severely immunocompromised.

This will not be the case for most people with MS, where your household contacts will be offered their vaccines at the standard point for their personal risk level.

For most people, immunity is complete around 7 days after the second dose of vaccine. A very small minority of people may not be fully immune, even if they are vaccinated.

The JCVI considers that once these 9 priority levels are complete, between 90-99% of the people in the UK at risk of death or severe illness from Covid-19 will have been protected. Later phases of vaccination may prioritise based on risk of exposure, so that's people like first responders, teachers, transport workers or the military would be prioritised.