What plans does the Minister have to extend the eligibility criteria for people to receive the flu jab before winter 2020?
On 24 July 2020 I announced Wales’ largest ever flu vaccination campaign. The extended campaign will see more people benefit from the free flu vaccine programme. Those eligible for flu vaccination are:
- Children aged two or three years on 31 August 2020
- Children in primary school from reception class to year 6 (inclusive)
- People aged six months to 65 in clinical risk groups
- People aged 65 and older
- Pregnant women
- Carers
- People with a learning disability
- Healthcare workers (including healthcare students) with direct patient contact
- Staff in nursing homes and care homes with regular client contact
- Staff providing domiciliary care
- Household contacts of people who are shielding due to Covid-19.
To meet the potential increased demand for flu vaccination, additional supplies of injectable flu vaccines have been procured for the UK. These will become available in November and will be offered to 50 to 64-year-olds in a phased approach. The priority however is to protect those at greatest risk.
I encourage everyone who is eligible to have an NHS flu vaccine to protect themselves and those around them. Social distancing measures are in place to protect people attending for immunisations and the staff administering the vaccines. Maximising flu vaccine uptake will not only protect those individuals who are most at risk but will also reduce pressure on NHS and social care resources.