WHY YOU CAN’T GET A VACCINE NOW – BUT MISSING OUT PUTS BABIES AT RISK OF DEATH

Q I’ve read that one of the reasons for the outbreak is not enough people getting vaccinated. Do I need to get a jab now?

A

There are currently no plans to offer new whooping cough vaccines to adults, nor is it available privately. The vast majority of people born since the 1950s received a jab as a child, although immunity begins to wane after around 12 years, research suggests. This has never been considered a problem as, for adults, the disease is not a serious concern.

Instead, the NHS has focused on vaccinating infants. Around nine in ten whooping cough deaths occur in children aged under three months – the most vulnerable group as their immune system hasn’t formed fully.

A vaccine is offered to pregnant women as the protective antibodies pass across the placenta and protect the baby in the first few months of life. The vaccine is also offered to children as part of the routine vaccination schedule. Prior to 2020, more than 70 per cent of pregnant women were taking up the offer of the jab. Since Covid, that figure has fallen to about 60 per cent.

The take-up among two-year-olds has dropped from 96 to 93 per cent over the past decade, due to what experts refer to as ‘vaccine fatigue’ – people less likely to get jabs as they recently received other vaccines. Hesitancy due to scares about Covid jab side effects is also a factor.

If a child misses a whooping cough jab, they can get it up to age ten.