Most Covid patients in East Lancashire hospital had jab, says council leader

Stop blaming vaccine hesitancy for spread of India Covid variant, says Mohammed Khan

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The majority of people in hospital with Covid-19 in East Lancashire have received a vaccine dose, a council leader has said, as ministers were criticised for blaming" a resurgence of cases on people who had not yet had the jab.

Mohammed Khan, the leader of Blackburn with Darwen council, said six of the nine coronavirus patients in the region's hospital had received at least one jab. Only three of the Covid patients at East Lancashire Hospitals NHS trust had not received a jab when they were eligible, Khan told the Guardian.