𝗘𝗮𝘁 𝗢𝘂𝘁 𝗧𝗼 𝗛𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗢𝘂𝘁

When did focus groups replace the need for appropriate Equality Impact Assessments?

#EOTHO was discriminatory at best (vulnerable people didn't benefit).

1/🧵
theguardian.com/business/2024/… "The documents reveal that polling for the Treasury in June 2020 found that only 13% agreed the government should create incentives for people to spend on eating out[.]."

Even the public did not agree!

2/

At the #CovidInquiry yesterday.

Our barrister @MaryRachel_McC reiterated @AdamWagner1's previous submission that Clinically Vulnerable people need to be considered as a separate equality group.

@Kim_LHarrison @ShaneSmith_Law
@SlaterGordonUK @DoughtyStPublic
1/🧵 The new needs of Clinically Vulnerable people, since the emergence of Covid, were not considered as public health measures were withdrawn.

Clinically Vulnerable people, to this day, are struggling to safely access:

💙 Healthcare
💜 Workplaces
💗 Schools and beyond...
2/

Yesterday was a very bad news day for UK people with poor immune protection against Covid.

The SUPERNOVA trial for the updated version of Evusheld is delayed, and so NICE is now not set to report until the end of February 2025.


1/🧵 nice.org.uk/guidance/indev…
People in this group include: transplant patients, whose immune systems must be heavily suppressed to prevent them destroying their new organs; or people with blood cancers.

Below are some further examples of high risk groups:

2/

🚨 Mask wearing became heavily politicised even before it was common practice in 2020.

Now, we are finding that even high-risk people face discrimination despite relying on masks as an essential measure to protect health.

1/🧵 #MaskDiscrimination
⬇️⬇️⬇️
clinicallyvulnerable.org/post/interview… ⬆️ In our first anonymous blog, a CVF member shares the challenges they encountered whilst job-seeking as a mask wearer.

Not all CV people are covered by disability laws, which enable 'reasonable adjustments' and even those who do qualify still struggle.

2/ #MaskDiscrimination

🧵This article flags some important issues faced by people with learning disabilities (LD), their experiences regarding Do Not Resuscitate orders.

🚨 However, for Clinically Vulnerable (CV) people (including those with LDs), several aspects of the article are highly problematic: By primarily discussing the impact on people with LDs, especially those who were not Clinically Vulnerable *which is important*, it inadvertently marginalises the experiences of Clinically Vulnerable people (most who don't have LDs but all are CV).

2/

inews.co.uk/news/politics/…

📢 It seems the BBC may not be pleased that Clinically Vulnerable people have shared video clips from Casualty and are now complaining.

Their potentially discriminatory (against us) content has now been removed from Facebook.

1/🧵

https://twitter.com/cv_cev/status/1768180056130527361

The content still remains on iPlayer.

2/

🚨 Andrea was DENIED her vote when new #VoterID laws clashed with her health need to wear a mask.

Her experience highlights one of the new barriers faced by Clinically Vulnerable people.

#MyMaskMyVote😷
🧵/1

https://twitter.com/andreabarrett__/status/1654083256021655552?t=lWrET84bmbJRxL41ig0K8A&s=19

Her situation isn't just about one election or one person. It's about ensuring democracy is inclusive for ALL.

In the post-Covid era, the UK government is ignoring the ongoing impacts on its most vulnerable.

#MyMaskMyVote😷
/2

https://twitter.com/ElectoralCommUK/status/1648697016111841286?t=-fd15H0AzjH97xmIdMYWxQ&s=19

Hi @BBCCasualty, your recent episode will contribute to the discrimination faced by people who are Clinically Vulnerable to Covid.

It concerns a character called Aishling, a lady wearing an FFP2 mask, who had isolated herself for four years.

1/🧵 Episode 4 - 'Trauma'

Aishling's "Covid anxiety" had resulted in her overdosing on anxiety medication and being unable to drive.

To assist this narrative, she was completely healthy and, therefore, clearly portrayed as a bit mad.

2/

⚠️ #SafeHealthcare

. *REALLY IMPORTANT THREAD *

#BREATHTAKING shows PPE used to protect staff.

Masks
💙Should tested be for "fit"
💜Be high quality FFP3 masks sealed around the face to prevent airborne infections
💗Be 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘁𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹 .@doctor_oxford explains, healthcare workers are not given FFP3s - even treating 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀. If CV themselves JOBS and LIVES have been lost.

There was 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 a policy to wear FFP3 to protect patients. So staff don't mask for uninfected vulnerable.

Lee-Anne, who has a Clinically Vulnerable family, has just spoken to @carolvorders about her experience - as her child was off-rolled (which is an illegal practice) rather than offering him a safe learning environment.

This is discrimination - education is a human right.

1/ She, and others like her, have saved the government money. She has to take the financial burden of educating her child.

@carolvorders noted parents and medics are asking for #CleanAir💨.

We are!!!

When we upgrade buildings for RAAC we MUST be improving ventilation.
2/

⚠️ Covid vaccine access likely to reduce from Autumn 2024 ⚠️

𝗧𝗟𝗗𝗥 : Potentially bad news for "such groups as 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 and 𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝗺𝗺𝘂𝗻𝗼𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹𝘀. Today's statement from the JCVI is jaw dropping.

What starts off as a seemingly innocuous announcement of the usual spring vaccine groups who are eligible for spring boosters veers off at the end with some bombshells.

This is interesting but also helpful.
"the ads may not have broken the rules"

Here are the rules:


Now we need to work out which rules we believe were broken and how... 🧵 asa.org.uk/codes-and-ruli…

https://twitter.com/hugx4pets/status/1753035534979526831

1. Social Responsibility (1.3)
The adverts are socially irresponsible, suggesting children with symptoms of illness, such as a runny nose or stomach ache (which may be symptoms of Covid or other serious conditions), should still attend school.

🤯 Cognitive dissonance

As we head into 2024, we all need to step up to actively challenge this more. Whether that is a news report, government advertising, or social media.

This year, we had "Summer flu".
Now we have "Festive flu" (only some of which is actually 'flu)

1/ We wouldn't recommend dipping into these posts unprepared. It is often hard enough often to manage your own family and friends...

But you will see everything from the conspiracy theorists:

2/

🚨WARNING :
Old bivalent vaccines were given to the MOST vulnerable population when a summer surge triggered an early start to the autumn vaccine campaign, before the newer XBB vaccines were available.

1/

https://twitter.com/cv_cev/status/1701141027665363282?t=YXtxmamm_moIBZpIl-7P1w&s=19

However, a new study has found that these older bivalent vaccines are ineffective against the JN.1 variant, currently circulating at a high rate globally. This is now resulting in the preventable hospitalisation of thousands of vulnerable people.

2/

https://twitter.com/EricTopol/status/1740751783721599406?t=OozWNKFt9Saj3llICIrI-Q&s=19

🚨READ THIS THREAD
(it was a tough write)

Clinically Vulnerable Families were rejected from M2 #CovidInquiry as our interests are not "sufficiently significant".

Yet, most reported deaths were followed by dismissive "underlying health condition" / "elderly".

#IncludeCVF💙💜💗 We are those people who remain at risk, which is why we *still* qualify for Covid vaccines / antivirals.

We had a significant interest then, and we do now. #CovidInquiry

#IncludeCVF💙💜💗

🙏If you see this, *please* RT & QT and tag someone who needs to see it🙏

Today, CVF members have shared our stories. Left behind by a past tensed virus, which remains ever present.

@BorisJohnson @RishiSunak

🚨Hear our voices🚨

1/ Freedom day took ours

https://twitter.com/cv_cev/status/1732429698989281363?t=ZEj0eFs_ilBGMxdZjgm7hg&s=19

2/ Clean Air and Masks are needed:

#IncludeCVF💙💜💗 #CovidInquiry

https://twitter.com/cv_cev/status/1732339105147637875?t=7jXy1KkIUc-rJeKdNpG9tA&s=19

It's gone a bit Baldrick today.

"A cunning route into segmentation"

"The only answer I can see beyond the existing mitigations (other than the fantasy app) is Stalinist segmentation. The virus kills the old and sick. The lockdown hits the young and healthy."

⚠️ #IncludeCVF ⚠️

https://twitter.com/tamcohen/status/1722252768029884797

"[.]could enable us to dodge straight age-based segmentation and use a personalised RAG rating instead."

"In extremist, if HMG wanted to make it illegal for a person u75 to meet someone o75 without a hazmat suit on, then that's a political/delivery call, not one for scientists!"

⚠️ Segmentation ⚠️

'The Great Barrington Declaration' by another name was presented to the Prime Minister by Gupta Heneghan and Sweden's State Epidemiologist.

News to us!
Why?
We were rejected for this module.

Who asked further questions on it?
Nobody...

#IncludeCVF
1/🧵 Head of the Covid Task Force, Simon Ridley, spoke a lot about Clinically Vulnerable people.

He discussed shielding and then the potential step of 'segmentation'.

Starting with shielding... it seems there were lots of discussions on who to shield.
#WhoDoWeNotSave

#IncludeCVF

🚨Dangerous journalism can risk lives

💙 The only protection vulnerable people only have is personal responsibility
💜 Many are still unvaccinated
💗 Infections are raging (*and it is Autumn)

🙏Please help, see below...

bbc.co.uk/news/health-66… 💔Don't pressure people like Sally (vulnerable o70) to get infecfed, she is doing all she can at a high personal cost

💔Don't test!? It doesn't make it go away

💔 Hand gel is a social cue? Implicit suggestion to remove it.

* This article deserves compliants *

A reminder of inequalities faced by Clinically Vulnerable Families 💙💜💔, as we do not have a voice in this critical Covid-19 Inquiry module on core government decisions.

Below is a compilation of submissions from other organisations this morning:

1) Children's charities: We are pleased that they have highlighted the fact that children have lost lives to Covid.

However, they have failed to identify significant impacts to clinically vulnerable children in unsafe schools/children from clinically vulnerable households.

No mention of Covid orphans.

⚠️ WARNING ⚠️ : Masked staff might not be the conscientious ones, but instead may have active infections.

This is a serious concern as local guidance appears to contradict government guidance and put patients at risk.

1/ Current guidance for "Managing healthcare staff with symptoms of a respiratory infection or a positive COVID-19 test result"

Advises:
🔹️Don't need to test
🔹️If +ve don't -ves to return
🔹️Follow local protocols to test / return if work with severely immunosuppressed (SI)
2/