COVID-19: Fears undocumented migrants in UK may shun coronavirus vaccine over data-sharing worries

An estimated 1.2 million undocumented migrants live in the UK, and many of them could be put off being vaccinated due to worries about the NHS passing on their details to the police. Their suspicions stem from a data-sharing policy between the NHS and the Home Office to establish if a visitor to the UK is chargeable for healthcare they receive. The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) says it has made it clear to NHS trusts that patients undergoing vaccination, testing and treatment for coronavirus only are not subject to Home Office status checks. The 'Take The COVID-19 Vaccine' campaign is urging the government to create a public awareness initiative to highlight this. 'The government's current policy is the right one,' says campaign founder Kawsar Zaman. 'But the practicalities of it don't work. There isn't a strategy in terms of a public information campaign to encourage them.'