1,000 days of lockdown… and HM Gov. withhold the keys
A blog to mark the passing of the one thousandth day my wife and I have been shielding from Covid-19. Please remember the forgotten 500K in the UK
A milestone we were hoping not to make, but it is now one thousand days locked away from the world due to Covid-19. Locked away, forgotten by government, and only of occasional interest to the media. It is now a government decision that keeps us locked away. And that is not going to be forgotten. There are 500,000 people in the UK still in this situation. Please share this post, or others which will no doubt follow from others in the coming days. #forgotten500K
Severe acute respiratory syndrome i.e., SARS-CoV-2 or Covid-19, remains deadly to people such as my wife. She has severe lung damage due to long-term disease; plus being immuno-suppressed means vaccines do not work.
This continues to effect 500,000 in the UK. Five-hundred thousand people plus their families – and of all ages. These are all severely clinically vulnerable category people. They may be cancer patients, or transplant patients, and many more suffering all manner of disease. Only in the UK.
A drug called Evusheld is a known solution. HM Gov approved its use on 17th March 2022. However, unlike the rest of the world, they have opted not to buy it. HM Gov have opted not to buy it. It is now in use throughout the world but remains withheld from NHS use by HM Gov. The solution is being withheld.
Once more for clarity. There are now 500,000 people just like my wife being denied this possibility being able to leave lockdown. We have been at home, often alone, and without interaction beyond hospital visits for 1,000 days. These are the forgotten 500K. And it is HM Gov finding reason to delay. Evusheld has been available and used effectively in US, Canada, Japan, Germany, France, Italy (i.e., the G7) and the whole of Europe throughout 2022. HM Gov are acting against the consensus view by the rest of the world, requiring our most vulnerable to remain locked down at home.
One thousand days and counting, but hopefully not too many more. I feel sure Evusheld will be in circulation in early 2023. It should be available now. High profile and united appeals by charities, health professionals, MPs, select committees, and protests on behalf of we who cannot leave our homes, continue to fall upon deaf ears. But there is ongoing cross-party support. It has been 1,000 days, but there is reason to think there will not be too many more.
One thousand days so far. A forgotten 500K through the whole of 2022. Please share this post and help make it not so many more…
Links embedded in this blog. Much more detail available here