New Men B immunisation advice
Following recent high profile stories about child deaths from meningitis B, Public Health England has issued further advice:
Men B immunisation programme
Following recent media coverage about the death of a young girl from invasive meningococcal disease caused by Men B, many GP practices have had queries from parents about the availability of Men B immunisation.
This information is taken from Public Health England publications and the GOV.UK website (see below for details).
What is the national policy for Men B immunisation?
The Men B immunisation programme started on 1 September 2015 for babies aged 2 months, ie, babies born on or after 1 July 2015. There was a limited catch-up programme for babies born on or after 1 May 2015. The routine schedule is for immunisation to be given at 2 and 4 months with the primaries, with a booster at 12 months.
Can I vaccinate children born before 1 May 2015 if parents request it?
No. The national stock of Bexsero® should only be used to vaccinate children who are eligible for NHS vaccination.
Can I vaccinate children born on or after 1 May 2015 who have not yet been vaccinated?
Yes. All children in the eligible cohort (ie, born on or after 1 May 2015) remain eligible for Men B immunisation until the age of two years. When Bexsero® has not been given as part of a primary course, give two doses at least two months apart. Those children who have received one dose before their first birthday only require one more dose. Please see the MenB PGD for more information.
If parents ask to pay for Men B immunisation for their children, what should I tell them?
GPs should not charge their own patients (ie, those registered at their practice) a private fee for the vaccine.
Parents seeking the vaccine privately should be made aware that they will be liable for the full costs of the vaccine and any additional administration charges that the private provider may apply. We understand that GSK has supply constraints on the Bexsero vaccine for the private market. Practices must not use centrally-procured stock for the national programme to vaccinate private patients or any patients outside the eligible cohort (other than those at high risk as defined in the green book).
Further information
- Information for parents – please direct parents to NHS Choices or the GOV.UK website.
There is general information about MenB immunisation on the NHS Choices website.
- There is information for parents and professionals about MenB immunisation on the GOV.UK website.
- “Immunisation against meningococcal B disease for infants aged from two months. Information for healthcare professionals” from the GOV.UK website.
- The Green Book chapter 22.
- The MenB PGD (your practice should have a copy of the PGD).
Sign-up to our new Buying Group and win an Amazon Kindle Fire tablet (20 Mar 2018)
Any practice who signs-up to our new Buying Group before 12:00 Wednesday 2 May (end of the morning break during our conference) will be entered in a draw to win...National Data Opt-Out to be introduced alongside the GDPR in May (16 Mar 2018)
The Government has announced that the national data opt-out will be introduced alongside the GDPR on 25 May 2018. It has also been agreed to present the national data opt-out...CQC update on the 2017/18 Data Security and Protection Requirements (16 Mar 2018)
The Care Quality Commission (CQC) has issued an update on the nine requirements for general practice from the 2017/18 Data Security and Protection Requirements. The Department of Health has...GDPR – further guidance now available (16 Mar 2018)
The EU’s General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) comes into force on 25 May 2018 when it replaces the UK Data Protection Act 1998. The GDPR is significant and wide-reaching in...Tips of the Month March 2018 (16 Mar 2018)
We provide weekly tips based on common queries which come through to us from London GPs and practice teams. These are shared via social media and collated for...CQC inspections and Significant Event Analysis (15 Mar 2018)
Our GP support team have seen an increase in the number of ‘Inadequate’ and ‘Requires Improvement’ CQC reports which identify the lack of awareness, discussion and/or documentation of Significant Event...GPC update on type 2 certificate deadline (28 Feb 2018)
Dr Krishan Aggarwal, Deputy Chair of the GPC’s Sessional Subcommittee has sent the following message out to GPs: “As you may be aware, the deadline for submission for the...Londonwide LMCs' February 2018 newsletter (22 Feb 2018)
Join our new Londonwide LMCs' Buying Group (21 Feb 2018)
We are delighted that so many practices have joined our new Londonwide LMCs’ Buying Group. The group will give registered London practices unique discounts on key products and services. ...Practice finance event Q and A summary (20 Feb 2018)
Our sold-out practice finance workshops in January provided the opportunity for GPs and practice staff ask questions to a number of experts and organisations; we have summarised some of these...Guidance
We provide expert guidance for practices in our guidance section, as well as an archive of other materials you may find useful.
GP Support
Contact our GP Support team if you need help or advice.
The team provide professional and pastoral support to GPs and practice teams on a broad range of issues.