Resource

Response to ‘Living with Covid’

On the 21st of February 2022, the government announced the lifting of all remaining covid restrictions. From the 24th of February it will no longer be a legal requirement to isolate if you test positive for covid 19. For those that are vulnerable, this has created a feeling of uncertainty and fear for the future.  

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NRAS response

NRAS recognise that this is difficult news to digest and will create problems for people going forward. Most of the people we reach, and our targeted audience will have been identified as CEV/CV and asked to shield, get extra vaccinations and to massively change their lives due to this virus. Although there are advances in medical treatments and the vaccines have shown remarkable success, it is clear that covid has not and will not go away completely. This means that we must find a way to live with virus. For many people, shielding has had a negative impact on their mental health and combined with the hardships that can come with RA, this. has put a tremendous strain on people’s wellbeing. Our ideal goal is for people to be able to return to a more ‘normal’ life whilst still being able to protect themselves from Covid 19. At this time NRAS is working with an alliance of patient organisations representing the clinically vulnerable across the UK and we will be liaising with Government as an alliance in response to the recent changes. We are refraining from broadcasting on our social media platforms at this time as it important that we align our messaging as a collaboration.

How to proceed

Until we receive further conformation on how the vulnerable are going to be protected going forward, we are urging individuals to consider their own risk and take any precautions that they feel are necessary to stay safe.

Please see the official ‘Living with COVID’ advice linked below. Section 4 outlines the procedure for protecting the most vulnerable.