Influenza: Vaccination

(asked on 3rd July 2023) - View Source

Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what estimate his Department has made of the percentage of seasonal flu vaccinations which can be delivered by (a) Community Pharmacies, (b) General Practice, (c) other providers.


Answered by
Maria Caulfield Portrait
Maria Caulfield
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade) (Minister for Women)
This question was answered on 11th July 2023

NHS providers determine how many seasonal flu vaccines to buy each year based on their local populations, eligible cohorts and uptake ambitions for the NHS programme as outlined in the annual flu system letter. The letter, published on the 25 May 2023, is based on the advice of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) who review the latest evidence on flu vaccines and advise on the type of vaccine to be offered to different age groups and on which vaccines should be prioritised for various at-risk groups.

General Practitioners and community pharmacists are responsible for ordering their own flu vaccines for the adult population from suppliers. These are then used to deliver the national flu vaccination programme, with deliveries phased through the season to help mitigate against risks of wastage, cold chain failure and to adequately cover the peaks and flows of local demand. In addition, Hospital Trusts are commissioned at local discretion, to further support delivery of the national flu vaccination programme, for example to women who are pregnant, long stay in-patients and those accessing outpatients' services.

School Age Immunisation Services (SAIS) are commissioned regionally to deliver the school aged influenza programme in line with the annual flu system letter and amendment published on the July 3, 2023. The school age programme for 2023/24 includes primary school aged children from Reception to Year 6 and secondary school-aged children in Years 7, 8, 9, 10 and 11. Vaccines for the children’s programme are procured nationally with SAIS

providers responsible for drawing down their own vaccines according to their schedules, capacity and demand, with deliveries phased through the season to help mitigate against risks of wastage and cold chain failure.

For in detail seasonal influenza percentage uptake delivered by (a) Community Pharmacies, (b) General Practice, (c) other providers please see page 41 and 42 of the following link:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1164871/GP-patients-flu-annual-report-2022-2023.pdf

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