Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make shingles vaccinations available to all people aged over 65.

Shingles vaccination was originally routinely offered as part of the national immunisation programme to those aged 70, using the Zostavax vaccine. In 2019, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) recommended that the programme should be changed to offer the Shingrix vaccine routinely at 60 years of age, that those aged between 60 and 70 years old should also be offered the vaccine, and that individuals would require two doses of Shingrix to complete the course.

Based on JCVI advice, the Department, the UK Health Security Agency and NHS England decided that the programme would be implemented in phases, with the first phase being that between 1 September 2023 and 31 August 2028, those who reach 65 or 70 years old should be called in on or after their 65th or 70th birthday. The second phase would be that from 1 September 2028 to 31 August 2033, those who reach age 60 or 65 years old should be called in on or after their 60th or 65th birthday. From 1 September 2033 onwards, vaccination will be routinely offered to those turning 60 years of age on or after their 60th birthday.

The JCVI also recommended that all severely immunosuppressed individuals aged 50 years old and older should be eligible for shingles vaccination due to their higher risk of complications from shingles. This programme change was also implemented on 1 September 2023. These individuals have been prioritised as part of the early roll-out of the programme to ensure those who are most vulnerable are protected.