BMJ - A seven point plan to suppress covid infections and reduce disruptions (19 July 2022)

Summary

In July 2021, the UK Government lifted all Covid protections, meaning people were no longer legally obliged to take infection control measures such as wearing face masks in designated places. Twelve months on, the UK is facing high levels of infection and hospitalisations from Covid-19.

In this opinion piece for The BMJ, members of Independent SAGE—a group of scientists working together to provide independent scientific advice about Covid-19 to the UK government and public—propose a series of measures to help people make informed decisions that will reduce the risk of illness and disruption to them, their families and their communities. The authors accuse the government of ignoring published scientific advice from their own advisory group, SPI-B, and call for action to give people the information they need to make responsible personal choices as part of the plan to 'live with Covid'.

Content

The measures proposed by Independent SAGE are:

1. Clear and consistent messaging concerning Covid risk and risk mitigation, reinforced by public statements by those in positions of authority.
2. Increased efforts to promote vaccine uptake, among all age groups,4 and with particular emphasis on groups among whom uptake has been low, in particular ethnic minority communities.5 This should be coupled with a clear long term plan to address waning immunity and immune escape by new variants.
3. Installing and/or upgrading ventilation/air filtration in all public buildings, with schools an urgent priority over the summer holidays.
4. Provision of free lateral flow tests to enable everyone to follow existing public health guidelines.
5. Financial and other support for all workers to self-isolate if infected.
6. Systematic promotion of the use of FFP2/FFP3 masks in indoor public spaces and public transport when infection rates are high.
7. Increased support for the equitable global provision of vaccines and anti-virals.