Meningitis vaccine drought means private clinics cannot offer jabs
PARENTS hoping to have their children vaccinated privately against meningitis B have been told there is a shortage of the vaccine.
Since September the NHS has offered jabs for babies aged two months, followed by a second dose at four months and a booster at 12 months.
But children are still vulnerable until the age of five, so many parents of children who were too old for the injection have paid for it privately.
Now, however, demand for the Bexsero vaccine has reached such levels that GlaxoSmithKline says it cannot keep up with orders.
The NHS programme will be unaffected, but private clinics have been advising parents that they cannot start any new courses of the vaccine.
Any child who has had one dose already should, however, be able to receive follow-up doses to finish the course. A statement from manufacturer GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said: “Due to unexpected global demand for Bexsero during 2015, we are experiencing supply constraints during the first half of this year.
“Although vaccination through the NHS childhood programme has been prioritised and is unaffected, we have unfortunately had to ask private clinics temporarily to not start new courses of vaccination. Children who have already started their course of the vaccine privately should still be able to receive their follow-up doses.
“We know the unexpectedly high demand for the vaccine reflects the importance parents have placed on protecting their children from meningitis B, so we are working hard to increase supply, and expect to have increased stock by summer 2016.”
More than 1,000 people, mainly babies and children, are estimated to contract meningitis B in the UK each year. About one in 10 of those affected will die, and one in three will be left with debilitating after-effects such as loss of limbs or brain damage, according to campaigners. Infants under one year of age are most at risk, and the number of cases peaks at around five or six months of age.
The disease can kill within hours. The symptoms in a baby or young child include a high fever with cold hands and feet, vomiting and a refusal to eat, agitation, drowsiness or being floppy or unresponsive, grunting or breathing rapidly, or having an unusual highpitched or moaning cry.
The vaccine costs around £260 for a private injection and booster shot two months later.
Dr Mary Ramsay, of Public Health England, confirmed that GSK’s supply constraints would not affect the NHS meningitis B vaccination programme.
Britain is the first country with such a programme available nationwide and it was hailed as a “landmark moment” when it was launched last year. Campaigners said it could prevent up to 4,000 cases by 2025, but warned that parents should be aware of meningitis symptoms.