§ 53. Mr. Jannerasked the Minister of Health his estimate of the number of persons who should be immunised against poliomyelitis in this country without delay; the groups which he has listed for priorities in this regard; and the estimated numbers in each of these groups, the order of priorities of such groups, and the number of vaccination doses required in respect of each of these groups for immunisation.
§ Mr. Walker-SmithI am anxious that as many persons as possible within the priority groups who have registered should be vaccinated against poliomyelitis as soon as possible. The present priority groups consist of children under 15 and certain smaller groups, the main one of which is expectant mothers. There is no order of priorities within the groups. The detailed arrangements are matters for the local health authorities.
In Great Britain at the end of February, the latest date for which detailed information is available, approximately 3 million persons, the great majority of them children, required vaccination with two injections and a further 650,000 with one injection. Some 6½ million doses were, therefore, required, towards which 2 million were then in the hands of the local health authorities. Detailed figures for the end of April will become available next month.