The NHS said that Muslims can take the COVID vaccine during Ramadan without breaking their fasts, with some centres offering extended opening times
Currently, 27 million people have been vaccinated in the UK. With the beginning of Ramadan, many people in the Muslim community will be fasting during daylight hours.
The vaccine rollout continues in the UK, with new measures introduced by the NHS to encourage uptake in vulnerable communities. We discuss why some communities are hesitant, here.
Dr Nikki Kanani, GP and national medical director for primary care said: “The largest vaccination programme in NHS history has been a huge success since its inception but we must continue to challenge misinformation and advocate the vaccine as being entirely appropriate to have during Ramadan.
“It is vital that people of all faiths feel able to come forward and get the vaccine.”
What measures are being taken to reach minority communities?
Dr Nikki Kanani created a blueprint which includes talking with community and faith leaders, translating materials into 20 languages and reaching communities with pop-up clinics and in places of worship, including Mosque’s such as those in Finsbury Park, Croydon and Brent, with lslamic scholars including Sheikh Mohammed Mahmoud OBE of East London Mosque and Imam Qari Asim, chairman of the Mosques and Imams National Advisory Board supporting the call to get the Muslim community vaccinated.
Is the COVID vaccine halal?
Yes.
The British Islamic Medical Association, an affiliate of the Muslim Council of Britain, has issued specific advice, recommending the vaccine and insisting it is okay to have during Ramadan.
Full ingredient lists are published by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA): AstraZeneca, Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna.
‘It does not break the fast’
Imam Yunus Dudhwala, Head of Chaplaincy Barts Health NHS Trust, said: “This Ramadan will continue to be different. The vast majority of scholars have deemed taking the vaccine whilst fasting as permissible and stated that it does not break the fast.
“The experts have stated that the COVID-19 vaccine is effective and the best way of protecting yourself and your loved ones. I ask my Muslim brothers and sisters to consider taking the vaccine when called.”
