Sajid Javid is sticking his head in the sand, expert warns, as long Covid cases mount and immunity falls

A leading expert has warned that the Government must not turn a blind eye, after the Health Secretary claimed ‘There’s no particular cause for concern’ over soaring Covid cases. 1 in 20 Brits currently have Covid, immunity has tumbled among triple-jabbed care home residents and long Covid may hit up to 30% of the population.

The leading Covid-19 testing expert, Dr Quinton Fivelman PhD, Chief Scientific Officer at London Medical Laboratory, is warning that tumbling immunity levels among home care residents may signal a wider crisis. He says the Government can’t simply turn a blind eye to soaring hospitalisations, falling antibody levels and increasing cases of long Covid.

Dr Fivelman warns: ‘The British public, led by the Government, seem to be sleepwalking into a new Covid-19 crisis. Yes, we are all completely fed-up with Covid-19 and Omicron is currently creating less severe symptoms, but we appear to have let our guard down at just the wrong time.

‘The Health Secretary, Sajid Javid, told the BBC yesterday that: “There’s no particular cause for concern” over rising case numbers. Now is not the time to be burying our head in the sand. The Government abandoned all Covid-19 regulations in England just as the new ‘stealth’ Covid variant, Omicron BA.2, was taking hold. That was a signal that many people naturally interpreted as a green light to relax and stop wearing masks in stores, on public transport, etc. As many scientists warned, this was exactly the wrong signal at the wrong time.

‘There are many reasons why Scotland was right to postpone ending its rules on face coverings and Wales looks likely to follow. To begin with, Covid does not impact on everyone equally. A new study of 15,000 care home residents has found that protection against hospitalisation and death fell by one-third three to seven months after vaccination. We still need to be making significant efforts to protect our most vulnerable. This week 5 million people across England at higher risk from Covid – the over-75s, care home residents and those who are immunocompromised – can start to book a second booster jab, but it will take time to work through them all.

‘They may be only the tip of the iceberg; we need to keep in mind that this group were the first to receive all three jabs. Other age groups may start to see a similarly steep fall off in antibody levels as time goes on.

‘We are all also underestimating the significant potential long-term impact of Covid-19. It’s not the same as a bad cold, or even the flu. It can inflict longer term damage. There are an estimated 1.3 million people in the UK currently suffering long Covid symptoms, according to the Government’s Office for National Statistics (ONS).

‘There is mounting evidence that up to 30% of people who contracted Covid-19 could develop PASC (Post-acute sequelae of coronavirus), commonly known as ‘long Covid’.  A study last year by the University of Washington, found that in a random group of Covid patients – over 80% of whom were outpatients and never hospitalised for the virus – approximately 30% reported persistent long Covid symptoms as long as nine months after illness.

‘Equally concerningly, a new study published in ‘Nature’ this month shows that, even after a mild infection, the overall size of the brain had shrunk slightly in the majority of Covid-19 cases. The overall brain size in infected people had shrunk between 0.2 and 2%.

‘There were losses in grey matter in the areas linked to smell, and regions linked to memory. Those who had recently recovered from Covid found it a bit harder to perform complex mental tasks. This is likely to be a cause of the continuing “brain fog” that many people report post-Covid, which can last for months after their other symptoms have apparently gone.

‘All of us, including the Health Secretary, are heartily wishing Covid-19 long gone, but that’s wishful thinking. Infections among over-70s in the UK surged to a record high in mid-March, with infection rates increasing in every region of the UK, apart from Northern Ireland. The Government must reverse its foolish decision to cancel free testing on 1 April, or it will be in danger of losing track of how fast the pandemic is now spreading and overloading our health services. It should also follow the example of the rest of Great Britain and reintroduce the mandatory wearing of masks in stores and on public transport.

‘For anyone concerned about their antibody levels and how effective their inoculation has been, taking a quantitative Covid antibody test is recommended. The new generation blood tests available from London Medical Laboratory are highly accurate, quick and simple to carry out, either at home through the post, or at one of the many drop-in clinics that offer this test across London and the southeast. For full details see: https://www.londonmedicallaboratory.com/product/lml-igg-quantitative