The government consultation on mandatory vaccination for health and social care workers, including all NHS workers is now open, via means of a public survey. The consultation is open to anyone with a concern around this issue and is open to public consultation until 11.45pm on the 22nd of October 2021.
Therapists for Medical Freedom are opposed to any kind of vaccine mandates or ‘jab-for-job policies’, on the grounds that these are a violation of the principles of informed consent, bodily autonomy and medical freedom.
The COVID-19 vaccinations use novel technologies, were developed less than a year ago, are still in clinical trials and are only authorized in the UK for emergency use. To mandate a medical treatment of this nature as a term of employment is unprecedented in the UK.
Medically Coercive
We believe vaccine mandates are medically coercive. This is deeply problematic on many levels, both ethically in terms of the human rights implications and in terms of safety, given the limited long-term data for these treatments.
Furthermore, there is little evidence to demonstrate the efficacy of the COVID-19 vaccinations in preventing transmission of COVID-19, nor do we have enough long-term safety data for many people to make informed consent around whether they are safe for them to take. You can read more about our stance on Vaccine Mandates in our open letter against vaccine passports.
We also believe that vaccine mandates are potentially in breach of various international laws, conventions and human rights legislation. We are aware there are multiple legal challenges to vaccine mandates being made in the courts on both a national and international level on this basis.
Wider Public Health Costs
There are also likely to be significant public health costs to the implementation of the Health and Social care of vaccine mandates.
In countries where COVID-19 vaccines have been mandated for health care workers, there has been a significant loss of staff due to people being forced out of their roles. This is already happening in the UK in the sector of residential care homes, which is now facing a staffing crisis and many vulnerable residents have been negatively impacted.
We believe that the last thing the UK needs during winter 2021 is the loss of thousands of highly qualified medical and social care staff. This is especially concerning when the NHS and other health and social care services are already at risk of overwhelm.
The wider public health implications of vaccine mandates for Health and Social Care are significant and could put many lives at risk. These must be considered as part of the consultation process and factored into a publically available, comprehensive risk assessment of the issue.
To take part in the public consultation, simply complete the online survey by 22nd October 2021.