Novartis completes NZ meningococcal B vacc program

Swiss drug major Novartis says that it has successfully completed a two-year vaccination campaign, during which it provided its meningococcal B vaccine, MeNZB, to over one million New Zealand residents. The product was designed, in collaboration with the national Ministry of Health, to protect against a particular strain of the disease that has infected 5,900 New Zealanders for more than a decade. Data from the program showed that the product, which was provided as a three-dose vaccination, had an 80% success rate in preventing cases of the disease.