COVID-19 treatment services transferred to integrated care boards (ICB) on 27 June 2023, which means that ICBs now have statutory responsibility for providing access to community-based COVID treatments, such as antivirals and neutralising monoclonal antibodies (nMAbs).
Residents who test positive for COVID-19 and who have a health condition that means they are eligible for COVID treatments*, will need to contact the new North Central London (NCL) COVID-19 Medicines Service to be assessed for treatment.
Patients can access this General Practice-led service by either:
- contacting their GP practice,
- calling NHS 111, or
- calling the NCL COVID-19 Medicines Service directly on 020 3838 7121 (available 10am to 1.30pm Monday to Friday and 10am to 12noon Saturday and Sunday).
Patients can also contact the service via email at cmdu@nhs.net (This mailbox will be monitored 9am to 5pm Monday to Friday and 9am to 2pm Saturday and Sunday).
Hospital specialists may also advise patients to contact the service if they have tested positive for COVID-19.
The service is available for all high-risk people, including children over 12, who are eligible for COVID treatments and registered with a GP in north central London. Others, such as visitors to our boroughs, those residing in north central London but not registered with a local GP and those without housing or in emergency accommodation will also be eligible for accessing this service.
It is important to note that those at highest risk will no longer be automatically contacted by the NHS about treatments after reporting a positive COVID-19 test result. Instead, eligible patients should contact the NCL COVID Medicines Service as soon as possible after testing positive so that they can be assessed by a clinician for COVID treatments.
As part of the new service, antiviral oral medication can be collected from a designated pharmacy or, under certain circumstances, delivered to the patient’s home. If a neutralising monoclonal antibody (nMAb) medication is needed to be prescribed as oral medication is contraindicated, this treatment will continue to be available by intravenous infusion at UCLH hospital as before. For patients unable to make their own travel arrangements to UCLH, patient transport can be arranged. For patients unable to travel, arrangements will be made for the treatment to be administered at their place of residence by a healthcare professional.
NHS England has sent out a letter to all patients previously identified as potentially eligible for COVID-19 treatments advising them of the changes to accessing COVID treatment services.
More information is available via our website here: COVID-19 treatments – North Central London Integrated Care System (nclhealthandcare.org.uk)
* For a full list of health conditions eligible for COVID-19 treatments please see The Independent Advisory report published in March 2023 available on the GOV.UK website.