People who are homeless or sleeping rough are set to be prioritised for Coronavirus vaccines as part of priority group 6.
The UK Government added the groups to group 6 of the Coronavirus vaccination priority list, which also covers people aged 16 to 65 with underlying health conditions that put them at increased risk from the virus.
The policy change currently impacts England and Wales, though Scotland and Northern Ireland may follow in adopting the policy.
The move, which Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said would save more lives, comes following new advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). On Thursday, the JCVI said that many people who are homeless or sleeping rough are likely to have underlying health conditions that may be under-diagnosed or not in official GP records. The JCVI said that these people should be offered the vaccine without the need for a GP registration or NHS number.
So far, over 23 million people in the UK have been vaccinated against COVID-19 by receiving at least one vaccine dose. Around 1.3 million people in the UK have had both of their vaccine doses.
