Coronavirus: Evusheld campaigners call for government to reverse decision

Mark Oakley says he faces a third winter shielding

Campaigners have called on the government to reverse a decision on the roll out of a Covid drug for people with weakened immune systems.

Earlier this month the government decided it would not supply Evusheld in the UK.

Mark Oakley, who has an impaired immune system, said he was "stuck in limbo" and "felt under house arrest".

A government spokesman said there was insufficient data on the duration of protection offered by the drug.

Evusheld was approved for use by the government in March, but was reviewed after the Omicron variant emerged.

The drug's manufacturer, AstraZeneca, said there was "ample real-world data that Evusheld works".

It is available in 32 countries.

The antibody treatment boosts protection against Covid for those whose immune systems do not respond well to vaccines

Mr Oakley, from Shoreham-by-Sea, West Sussex, had to close his landscape gardening company once Covid hit.

He insists the drug would make an enormous difference to his life.

He said: "It would mean I could go back to doing a lot more activities that I'm restricted from doing now.

"I'm extremely disappointed, upset and disgusted the government could make that decision. It's simply not acceptable."

Martin Eve, from Broadstairs, Kent, represents the campaign group Evusheld for the UK.

He said: "Two and a half years on, people who are severely immunocompromised are still shielding.

"It's an enormous risk for me just to go to a coffee shop. We are just ordinary people who want our lives back."

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A government spokesman said: "We are determined to support the most vulnerable as we live with Covid and immunocompromised patients are a priority for other treatments, access to free tests and vaccination.

"We continue to explore the market for promising treatments that could prevent infection, to add to the antibody and antiviral treatments that are already offered on the NHS."

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