Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the eligibility requirements for the respiratory syncytial virus vaccine.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is the United Kingdom’s expert committee that advises the Government on immunisations programmes.

In June 2023, JCVI advised on introducing respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) immunisation programmes to protect older adults and infants at greatest risk of harm from RSV infection.

Following a competitive tender and in line with JCVI advice, the new RSV vaccination programmes began in England on 1 September 2024 for pregnant women and adults aged between 75 and 79 years old. Both programmes use Pfizer’s Abrysvo® vaccine, which is approved only for use in pregnant women from 28 weeks, for infant protection, and older adults, following clinical trials in these groups.

When advising the introduction of an RSV vaccination programme for adults aged between 75 and 79 years old, the JCVI considered that there was less certainty about how well the vaccine works in people aged 80 years old and over, as there were not enough people of this age in the clinical trials to be able to see if the vaccines are protective in this age band.

The structure of an immunisation programme is dynamic and the JCVI will continue to keep evidence under review. The Department will consider any further JCVI advice on who should be offered an RSV immunisation in due course.