UK school leavers and new students to be offered meningitis B vaccine | Vaccines and immunisation

Teenagers in their final school year and young people starting university will be offered two doses of a vaccine to protect them against meningitis B, the government has announced.

The one-off vaccination programme, which will begin in late July, comes after an unprecedented outbreak of meningitis B in Kent earlier this year along with clusters of cases in Dorset and Berkshire that, together, led to the deaths of three young people.

While each group of cases involved different strains of MenB, all would have been covered by the vaccine, Bexsero. This is given as two doses at least 28 days apart, and protects against most strains of MenB bacteria, with experts noting the protection is thought to last at least six years.

The vaccine will be offered to all young people in the UK born between 1 September 2007 and 31 August 2008 – teenagers of year-13 age in England and Wales or equivalent school years in Scotland and Northern Ireland – and people under 25 starting university or moving into some residential further education settings for the first time this autumn, including international students.

The health secretary, James Murray, said: “The Kent outbreak and recent clusters indicate a possible change to the way MenB affects people. While we assess the latest evidence, we are acting now to help protect young people at highest immediate risk as they enter university and residential colleges this autumn.”

Murray said offering two doses of the vaccine before the academic year began would help reduce the risk of serious illness and larger outbreaks of the disease. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has noted that cases of invasive meningococcal disease tend to peak in October to November each year.

Murray said: “I urge all those students who are eligible to come forward for their two doses in July and August, to give them peace of mind as they head off to continue their studies.”

Caroline Temmink, the director of vaccination at NHS England, said: “Those eligible will be contacted directly through the NHS app, by text and email, and for those under 25 starting university for the first time they will be able to book their appointment directly with available pharmacies.”

MenB bacteria are often carried harmlessly in the back of the nose and throat, but in some people they can cause serious infections that result in meningitis – an infection of the membranes surrounding the brain and spinal cord – blood poisoning or both.

According to the NHS, up to one in 10 cases of bacterial meningitis are fatal, while those who survive can be left with permanent health problems, such as hearing loss or epilepsy.

Those at most risk are babies, young children, teenagers and young adults, with the risk higher among young people who go to university than those who do not as a result of a cluster of factors, including shared accommodation, parties and large social networks that aid the spread of the bacteria.

The MenB vaccine has been given on the NHS as part of the routine immunisation programme for babies in the UK since 2015. But, while young people are routinely offered the MenACWY vaccine, which covers four other meningococcal groups, they are not routinely offered vaccination against MenB on the NHS.

As a result some parents have turned to private MenB vaccination, which can cost £200 or more per child for two doses.

Campaigners have called for an expansion of the MenB vaccination programme, something the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is considering.

Dr Shamez Ladhani, a consultant epidemiologist at the UKHSA, said the new offering was part of an emergency outbreak response rather than a routine immunisation programme, noting it would encompass about a million teenagers and young people.

“The group that is being vaccinated is broadly the group at the highest risk,” he said.

Adam Finn, a professor of paediatrics at the Bristol Children’s Vaccine Centre, said the announcement would be welcomed.

“As regards the ‘one-off’ nature of the announcement, I’d agree that this is a bit unusual and perhaps reflects ongoing uncertainty around the cost-benefit of immunising so many young people to prevent rather small numbers of cases,” he said.

“But this is clearly a disease which everyone wants to see prevented.”

Alex Stanley, the vice president of the National Union of Students, said the announcement showed governments across the UK had listened to people’s concerns.

“We encourage all eligible young people to get the vaccines. They have the potential to prevent another devastating outbreak, and we hope that every young person will play their part in that,” he said.

“There should never be a cost barrier to lifesaving vaccines, and we hope this becomes a regular vaccination programme.”