Quad-strain meningococcal vaccine to be added to Australia's NIP

To help protect our youngest Australians from the devastating consequences of meningococcal, the Australian Government will add a quad-strain vaccine to the National Immunization Program (NIP), Minister for Health Greg Hunt announced today.

The new vaccine (Nimenrix) covers against A, C, W and Y strains (MenACWY) and will be added to the NIP ahead of the next peak meningococcal season which, based on previous years, is expected to be in the second half of the year.

Nimenrix was developed by the UK’s GlaxoSmithKline but, along its other meningitis vaccine Mencevax, it was divested to US drugs giant Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) in June 2015, as part of antitrust requirements relating to a swap deal with Novartis.

In recent years we have seen a rise in the number of invasive meningococcal cases in Australia. In 2017, there were 382 cases reported nationally, compared with 252 cases in 2016 and 182 cases in 2015, the Minister said. Deaths associated with meningococcal have also risen, with 28 deaths in 2017, compared with 11 deaths in 2016 and 12 deaths in 2015.

Currently, infants aged 12 months are given a single-strain meningococcal C vaccine.

Upgrading to the quad-strain is great news for parents and infants, but it’s only the first step in the Turnbull Government’s broader approach to reduce the impact of meningococcal.

In March 2018, the Pharmaceutical Benefits Advisory Committee (PBAC) will consider the listing of a MenACWY vaccine for adolescents.

The announcement today follows the decision earlier this week by PBAC to recommend the listing of Nimenrix for infants aged 12 months of age.