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Updates & News

FEB 2026

UPDATES FOR ALL

Hepatitis B household contact tracing pilot on its way! See here for documents relating to a chronic hepatitis B contact tracing pilot.

3rd Feb: Time to get the laminator out again - a revised incomplete vaccine algorithm has arrived (of course, immediately after I printed out a large batch for a course I'm teaching). It has been updated to reflect the updated pneumococcal vaccine eligibility for immunocompromised individuals. A new larger format print version has also been added (that text is getting smaller and smaller!).

16th Feb: Measles outbreak could see unvaccinated pupils excluded from schools in north London is the headline in the BBC and many other media sources at the minute. Very worrying this current outbreak in London.

18th Feb: Intriguing and pleasing headline from WHO: Next-generation influenza vaccines could save millions of lives, finds WHO. Finally- a universal flu vaccine is getting closer!!

19th Feb: And more good news: Single vaccine could protect against all coughs, colds and flus

23rd Feb: I've added some more links about HCAs and consent to the guidance section just for info. Very grateful to Jane Chiodini and Jasmin Smart for sharing some of these.

24th Feb: Green Book chapter update alert! Hepatitis B: Updates to eligibility for targeted vaccination of people at higher risk of exposure.

24th Feb: GP contract (vaccine-related) changes at a glance:

Amendment of the QOF to introduce additional improvement thresholds for the 3 childhood vaccination QOF indicators. These changes are intended to recognise and reward practices, particularly those in more deprived areas that may not meet the existing achievement thresholds but demonstrate meaningful and sustained improvement in vaccination uptake.
The extension of the RSV vaccination programme to all adults aged 80 and over and all residents in care homes for older adults will be reflected in the Statement of Financial Entitlements (SFE), in addition to existing cohorts.
A new requirement for PCNs to ensure that eligible residents in aligned care homes are identified and offered seasonal and routine vaccinations in line with national recommendations. This will not necessarily mean that PCNs are responsible for administering the vaccinations but they must ensure arrangements are in place to offer vaccination.

26th Feb: The Flu letter is in for 26/27! Accompanied by the poster showing the vaccines marketed for 26/27. Quick summary if you are busy: There are no changes to eligible cohorts for the 2026 to 2027 programme and the timing remains the same staggered (for some) start as last year. All vaccines are trivalent again. There are some firm words about planning to do more for uptake, especially in underserved groups. This will likely align with the new GP contract which is due this week. They also advise prioritising 2/3 year olds. There have been 2 changes to the JCVI advice for adult flu vaccines for 2026 to 2027. Firstly, in those aged 65 years and older, IIVc should be considered equivalent to allV, llV-HD, and IIVr. And secondly, in those aged 50 years to 59 years in clinical risk groups, IIV-HD can be used off-label. Looking at the vaccines table, IIVe seems to be very much taking a back seat now.

While we are on Flu here's a quick vaccine uptake snapshot as of data published 26th Feb (uptake up to 31st Jan):

A total of 45.4% of all frontline healthcare workers have been vaccinated for influenza (485,398 of 1,069,606).
For children, the reception years are doing the best at 56.3%, with the age 2's and year 11's achieving the lowest uptake at 43.4%.
And for GP patients, over 65's are at 74.4%, under 65's in clinical risk groups are at 40.6% (worrying), pregnant women are at 38.5% (also worrying).

CHILDHOOD IMMUNISATION NEWS

3rd Feb: A really comprehensive and interesting maternity special Vaccine Update has landed. I thought this was a particularly informative edition and well worth a read. Get a BIG brew on the go.

5th Feb: Very interesting and revealing set of numbers in here: Routine childhood immunisation: deaths and hospitalisations prevented. Estimated annual deaths and hospitalisations prevented by routine childhood immunisation in England. Need a quick summary?: It's LOADS.

5th Feb: I jinxed it. I mused that it's only rotavirus that hasn't changed in some way recently on the childhood programme. Then the Rotavirus vaccination programme: information for healthcare practitioners doc got updated to let us know the packaging is changing. Only a small change. No panic needed.

10th Feb: MMRV programme: information for healthcare practitioners guidance updated to include guidance on use of ibuprofen and the administration of MMRV vaccine to a child who has continued close contact with a pregnant woman.

Jan 2026: Diphtheria outbreak in the Western Cape. A total of 19 deaths have been recorded among probable and confirmed respiratory diphtheria cases in South Africa, resulting in an overall case-fatality ratio of 21%. Twelve of these deaths occurred in the Western Cape. Vaccination gaps appear to be a key driver of vulnerability. Among those aged 12 years and younger who fell ill, several were unvaccinated or had not received booster doses, while others had only completed part of the infant immunisation schedule. The report stresses that protection depends not only on early childhood vaccination but also on booster doses later in life.

16th Feb: Campaign alert! In the wake of some shocking figures this week of hospitalisations with measles in the unvaccinated, the government is ramping up the marketing strategy. Parents are being encouraged not only to ensure their own children are fully up to date, but also to help raise awareness among family, friends and their wider communities about the importance of routine immunisation. I love this. Although I hope they also try to include some reassuring elements, as well as promotion. I feel that from what I am hearing on courses, parents are sometimes declining the MMRV, seemingly at greater rates than the MMR (this is purely anecdotal from my own observations). The campaign (over 6 weeks) includes TV and radio advertising, social media, press and partnerships activity. See if you can use any of the materials on your own channels like GP websites and TV screens in the surgery... A communications toolkit is available in the Campaign Resource Centre and communications materials including digital display screens are here.

22nd Feb: Government press release: More children to be protected from deadly viruses: New changes to the GP contract will help protect thousands more children across the country from deadly and highly infectious diseases. The new GP contract will be landing this week so I'm intrigued to read the details. It looks like a lot of inequalities in vaccination will be targeted by this new (and seemingly fairer) approach. Watch that space!

TRAVEL HEALTH NEWS

You might remember me mentioning David last month. We got together last week to do some filming and acted out a consultation together. We are editing away in the background so watch this space to see the outcome of our labour!! We turned David's apartment into a clinic slash studio. More work goes into these things than you might imagine...

2nd Feb: Hepatitis A infection: prevention and control guidance updated with some translated materials. This is important guidance to help public health professionals manage hepatitis A infections and recommendations for pre-exposure immunisation.

I've been getting a lot of questions around Nipah lately on the back of confirmed cases in India during January. At present, cases remain low and health officials have said there is no reason for fear an outbreak. Pakistan has nonetheless introduced enhanced screening checks for people who have travelled in from India. Pakistan is also about to launch the first nationwide polio vaccination campaign of this year in Feb. The campaign aims to immunise over 45 million children. Go Pakistan!!

Lunar New Year 2026: Travel advice

2nd Feb: Eeek Shigella strikes!!! Several Britons dead after stomach illnesses in Cape Verde - what we know so far. And see Health warning over Cape Verde travel after stomach bug deaths. As always NaTHNaC are on it and have created an alert and fact sheet to go with it.

Roll up! Roll up! The RCPSG are now accepting applications for the fourth cohort of their Postgraduate Diploma in Travel Medicine, a 12-month course commencing on 5 May 2026. Guess who is Lead for module one? MEEEEE!!!

4th Feb: A preventative campaign for cholera vaccination is being re-initiated for the first time in three years. Mozambique is the first country to restart vaccinations, while Bangladesh and Democratic Republic of the Congo are planning to do the same.

11th Feb: A news story from MHRA. MHRA introduces additional restrictions for use of the Chikungunya vaccine (IXCHIQ). The vaccine should not be used in people aged 60 or over, and in individuals of any age who have high blood pressure, heart disease, diabetes, or chronic kidney disease.

Worth a look at this for some useful Japanese Encephalitis statistics and patient stories

17th Feb: Nipah virus causing a possible real-life ‘Contagion’ film scenario – should we be worried? and Could the Nipah virus lead to another global lockdown?

27th Feb 2026: Two-dose or not two-dose? That is the question. I wrote a quick rabies-related blog this evening and I'm dedicating it to lovely Fiona who was on my course today and raised this interesting topic.

ADULT IMMUNISATION NEWS

2nd Feb: RSV vaccination for older adults: expansion of eligibility. See here for Information on the expansion of the eligibility criteria of the older adults respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccination programme from 1 April 2026. Don't forget (See news item last month) In February 2026 NHSE is running a national RSV invitation campaign to support uptake. Invitations will be sent to unvaccinated individuals that are eligible for the CURRENT older adults RSV vaccination programme. The Green Book has also been updated with latest evidence and details of the catch-up programme for people age 80 and over, JCVI advice on clesrovimab, and MHRA guidance on preF vaccines.

16th Feb: UKHSA RSV PGD updated as follows:

inclusion criteria extended for the older adults programme to include immunisation of individuals aged over 80 years and residents of older adult care homes, as recommended by JCVI
removal of the exclusion criteria for adults who have reached 80 years of age
reinforcing that the vaccine may be given to pregnant individuals of any age, including those aged under 18 years
adjustment of the dose and frequency of administration advice for older adults, to include residents in older adult care homes
inclusion of the MHRA Drug Safety Update from July 2025, advising of a small increased risk of Guillain Barré syndrome in older adults aged over 60 years. Adverse drug reactions updated in line with the Abrysvo® summary of product characteristics
advice that COVID-19 vaccine may be safely co-administered with RSV vaccine in line with the update to the RSV chapter of the Green Book
clarification that older adults immunised before the age of 75 years under the private market remain eligible for an NHS dose of vaccine.

26th Feb: UKHSA blog: Millions eligible for free shingles vaccine urged to come forward. Figures published today (see here) show that 42.1% of those turning age 66, who had been eligible since their 65th birthday, had received their first Shingrix dose by October 2025. Among those turning age 71 who have been eligible since turning 70, vaccine uptake coverage stands at 53.5%.

The main findings for the academic year 2024 to 2025 were that:

coverage of Shingrix dose 1 was 26.6% in those who turned 65
coverage of Shingrix dose 1 was 37.4% in those who turned 70
coverage of Shingrix dose 1 was 42.1%, and dose 2 was 27.5%, in those who turned 66 [Note 1]
coverage of Shingrix dose 1 was 53.5% and dose 2 was 37.5% in those who turned 71 [Note 1]
coverage of Shingrix dose 1 was 25.4%, and dose 2 was 16.2%, in those who turned 50 and over with severe immunosuppression

Note 1. Coverage of dose 2 only includes data from 57.9% of GPs due to data quality limitations

Interesting news! In December 2025, Sanofi announced it would acquire Dynavax Technologies in an all-cash deal worth about $2.2 billion. This wasn’t a licensing agreement — it was a full takeover. The acquisition includes:

Heplisav-B (their licensed adult Hep B vaccine)
The TLR9 CpG adjuvant platform
Their pipeline — including a shingles candidate (Z-1018)

Sanofi’s stated aim was to strengthen its adult vaccine portfolio, particularly in areas with large unmet need.

26th Feb: RSV uptake on the maternal programme has been published for this month. Sneak preview: 59.9% (25,398 out of 42,424) of women that reported giving birth during the survey month received an RSV vaccine. Coverage varied by ethnic group, with the highest coverage reported among the Chinese ethnic group (74.3%) and the lowest among the Black - Caribbean ethnic group (34.0%).

Interesting reading this month:

Many of you will have met Coco if you have done a virtual course with me

I'm very sad to announce that she passed away on the 20th Feb. Whether you were aware of her presence or not, Coco always sat next to me when doing a virtual course. She was my little furry Zoom buddy. Much of my course feedback includes comments like; 'more Coco please'. This was our last photo together. So just putting this here as a little reminder of all the help she gave me with sticking to breaks and the smiles she inspired when she showed her bum to everyone on the course or growled at someones dog on the screen. She will be greatly missed.