Yesterday, @lara_wong, took the stand as founder and leader of CVF.
**Sorry for the delay!**
- New risks posed by Covid-19
- We need to be recognised as an equality group.
1/ FOLLOW THIS THREAD
Clinically Vulnerable people were, and are still, being let down.
2/
The lack of infection prevention and control in vaccination centres for an airborne virus was very concerning.
3/
People who had multiple conditions or rare diseases were not in clearly defined groups and had to fight for their own eligibility.
4/
Good examples of vaccination centres:
π Drive through
π Tented (very well ventilated)
5/
People were never informed on how to reduce their risks using better, close fitting masks such as FFP3 or FFP2s.
Some people were asked to remove better masks. 6/
Third Primary doses.
These were hugely problematic, because people were often aware that they were eligible. They also had to prove that they did qualify and they were not told how to do this.
7/
Problems with the recording of doses in the NHS computer system.
8/
Therapeutics (antivirals)
Hugo Keith KC, asked about issues with the range of antivirals available.
9/
There was a need for different antiviral treatments.
10/
The importance of Evusheld and the impact on the severely immunosuppressed.
The consequence of not protecting them was phenomenal:
π Mental health
π Social connections
π Ability to re-engage with the rest of the world
11/
The lack of the UK government's action left severely immunosuppressed people essentially locked up without any route out.
12/
People who are severely immunosuppressed have a greater reliance on antiviral treatments.
13/
Severely immunosuppressed people are invited twice a year in order to improve their immune response, and the vaccines are beneficial for the majority.
14/
Hugo Keith KC lays out concern around antiviral clinical trials.
15/
Concerns that some people were invited on clinical trials with a 50% chance of treatment when they already had been given emergency approvals.
16/
The importance of children's vaccines to Clinically Vulnerable families.
17/
It was incredibly difficult for children in Clinically Vulnerable families who were left waiting for their vaccines because they were not priortised.
18/
Misinformation / disinformation
The wider community - there is a clear knock on from people not taking up their vaccines if it is undermined.
Clinically Vulnerable people are not immune to these messages.
19/
CVF do appreciate how accessible the Covid Inquiry venue is and the efforts of inquiry staff to impleme measures to reduce the risks for Clinically Vulnerable people who attend.
β οΈEast Kent Trust failed to report their first case for 2 daysβ οΈ
Here's what you need to know.
TLDR: Peaked 13th March. No new cases since - with reporting delays, but that's even better news than it sounds.
1/π§΅ π @laurabundock @SkyNews
THE OUTBREAK IS DECLINING but understates how well that's going. π
The earliest case became unwell on 9th March, with the latest on 16th March, and the peak was 13th March.
2/
Cases take time to be confirmed and reported.
The fact that nothing new has surfaced in the data as of 23rd March - despite the reporting lag - means the real-world situation is almost certainly better than the numbers show.
Meningitis
* Important thread for those who prefer balanced and factual information *
In order to understand risk we need to break down a few things....
π¦ Risk from the bacteria
πππ Individual risk
π Environmental risks 1/
The Kent outbreak is predominantly MenB (Group B). This is a serious infection - and potentially an adapted strain - investigations are ongoing...
Bacterial meningitis is rare but more severe than viral, and up to 1 in 10 cases of bacterial meningitis in the UK is fatal.
2/
MenB isn't new. There are around 300 cases of MenB per year in the UK, even with vaccination programmes.
What's unusual is the cluster - multiple cases linked to a single location in a short window. It has now spread to a student at a second university in Canterbury, Kent. 3/
UK COVID INQUIRY - CVFπππ
@AdamWagner1 Closing Submissions
The Covid Inquiry has good ventilation protocols (as advised by CVF at the start of the Inquiry) including HEPA filters.
Under 1000ppm is therefore the safe threshold ( but without it would be under 800ppm).
1/
We need to understand airborne transmission in order to make all indoor environments safer for everyone, and especially for Clinically Vulnerable people.
2/
The need for Clinically Vulnerable people to have:
CVF were concerned that many older people, who were at high risk, were not supported to shield - which included advice on how to stay safe, as well as food deliveries and community outreach.
π¨ NEW DfE GUIDANCE
- VENTILATION & AIR QUALITY -
Clean air matters - especially for #ClinicallyVulnerable children, staff and families. This is an important recognition that airborne transmission is preventable.
1/
But the proposed COβ thresholds are too high. 800ppm should be the upper limit - not 1500ppm. By 1500ppm, air is already significantly rebreathed. Thatβs not a precautionary standard for children, let alone those at higher risk.
If weβve learned anything from the pandemic, itβs that minimum compliance is not the same as safety. #ClinicallyVulnerable pupils cannot βchooseβ lower exposure if the baseline standard is poor.
3/
We would encourage you to watch @lara_wong 's inquiry evidence in full.
However, out amazing team have clipped these extracts for you!
1/
CVF's Survey
In the summer of 2025, CVF gathered in depth survey evidence about the impacts of the pandemic on CV households - which has now been shared multiple times to inquiry experts and others.
2/
People were commonly told that
"They should hurry up and die so that they could get their lives back."