Adults aged 80 years and over and “all residents in care homes for older adults” will be eligible for the RSV vaccine from April 1, the government announced yesterday.
It comes after the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) published advice in July to extend the vaccination programme to “older adults”.
The government decided, in line with the advice, that the RSV vaccine should be offered to “additional groups in the population most vulnerable to serious outcomes from RSV infection”.
Read more: NHSE national RSV campaign points patients to pharmacies
The Department of Health and Social Care (DH) explained that those eligible for both RSV and Covid 19 vaccinations “will be able to get both vaccines at the same appointment once the spring 2026 Covid 19 campaign begins on April 13”.
And a joint letter from the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) and NHS England (NHSE) announcing the expansion stressed that “co-administration” of the two vaccines is “encouraged”.
Life-saving
This will “help achieve high uptake before rates of RSV circulation increase in the winter months” and will “reduce costs to the NHS”, it said.
It noted, however, that RSV vaccines “can be administered at any time” and offers for the vaccination “should continue throughout the year”.
Health minister Stephen Kinnock said he was “pleased to accept the advice from the JCVI, which has carefully reviewed the evidence showing the clear benefits of extending this programme”.
Read more: RSV jab pilot to expand by ‘up to’ 200 pharmacies
NHSE launched a national RSV campaign in February to “support uptake of the vaccine”, part of which will direct patients to community pharmacies in areas where they are “commissioned to deliver” the vaccination.
Meanwhile, the government announced last April that NHSE would increase the number of community pharmacies offering the RSV vaccine in 2025/26.
The commissioner will “expand and support evaluation of the community pharmacy vaccination offer by up to 200 sites in identified target areas”, it said at the time.
