THE NHS website has crashed as millions of Brits rush to get their booster jab following Boris Johnson’s Omicron warnings last night.
Those trying to book their third vaccination online have been told since 8pm yesterday that the site is “currently experiencing technical difficulties”.
After being placed in a ‘queue’, many users found they were unable to access the booking form at all.
The site also showed repeated error messages and ‘bad gateway requests’.
Some who tried for hours to book their jab described it as “harder than getting Glastonbury tickets”.
Those who urgently need medical help or advice, but are not suffering a life-threatening condition, should call 111 to speak to an adviser.
It comes after the PM vowed to make sure all eligible adults get the booster jab this month as part of a “national mission” to beat the mutation.
NHS WEBSITE DOWN
In a major announcement, he revealed the launch of the Omicron Emergency Boost – giving everyone over the age of 18 the chance to get a third jab by the end of the year.
He warned that two doses of the jab are “simply not enough” to give the “level of protection we all need” as he implored people to get their boosters.
Data shows boosters offer up to 75 per cent protection from mild infection from Omicron, with Trending In The News relaunching our hugely successful Jabs Army campaign.
But a top minister yesterday warned that one million Brits could have been infected with Omicron by the end of this month.
Education Secretary Nadhim Zahawi said: “We now a have variant so infectious, it will dominate and exponentially grow.
“You get to 1million infections by, say, the end of December.
Read our Omicron live blog for the latest updates
“One per cent [of those infected who suffer severe illness] is 10,000 people suffering severe illness in hospital.
“Three days later its 2m, three days later its 4m, three days beyond that it’s 8m.
“Even if it’s milder by 50 per cent than Delta, the numbers are huge.”
However, experts are looking towards South Africa, where it’s believed infections may now be waning – even though no lockdown was imposed.
According to the country’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases, only about 30 per cent of those hospitalised with Covid in recent weeks have been seriously ill.
That’s less than half the rate seen during the first weeks of previous waves.
BOOSTER RUSH
Average hospital stays are 2.8 days for Omicron, compared to eight days for other mutations.
Dr Angelique Coetzee, the medic who raised the alarm about Omicron in South Africa, told Good Morning Britain today the variant has seen largely “mild” symptoms.
Even though South Africa has “quite a sick older population”, while fewer younger people are vaccinated, the disease has not yet translated into a huge increase in hospitalisations, she said.
“You will have a significant increase in cases,” she said.
“That’s a given.
“But your healthcare system should be able to detect it very easily.”
She said in most cases, patients admitted to hospital are later discovered to have Covid, rather than being admitted for the virus.
“It’s mild. Even our president got Covid, and I am quite sure he will also have mild disease and it’s not a concern,” she said.
“The mild symptoms, we have not seen those symptoms yet go into severe disease.”
