Doctors in Britain are being offered thousands of pounds by wealthy individuals to skip the queue to get the Covid vaccine, it has been claimed.
It has been suggested that people with “almost infinite money” are trying to get the jab, even though it is currently only available on the NHS.
Private doctors hope to be able to charge people to get the vaccine by April.
In the meantime, there has been continued wrangling over who should get the potentially life-saving jab – and when – with the elderly and the vulnerable at the front of the queue.
Dr Roshan Ravindran, owner of clinic Klnik in Wilmslow, Cheshire, told The Sunday Times that he had been offered £2,000 for the jab.
He said: “People inquiring of it often have had a relative who has passed away – the virus hasn’t been selective.
“The poor and rich have all been affected and all lacked control. And so now what people are looking for is a degree of control.”
He continued: “It’s priceless. I have people with almost infinite money, who would do anything because they’ve had relatives pass away with Covid.”
But Dr Ravindran says he has told wealthy patients they will have to wait until private companies get hold of the vaccine in due course.
That, though, could still be months away.
He said: “We’ll probably start getting a private supply from April.
“People will come up with a vaccine the Government won’t buy – then flood the market.
“Every drug company is trying to come up with a vaccine.”
Dr Ravindran told The Sunday Times that he believes some private companies will charge as much as £20,000 to vaccinate wealthy clients.
Some doctors’ representatives have said the prospect of individuals “jumping” the queue to get the vaccine is unethical.
But others say that delivering the vaccine privately to those who can afford it could help to free up additional capacity for the NHS to deliver more jabs to those unable to pay.