A nationwide shortage of the influenza vaccination won’t hit the wallets of the country’s most vulnerable.
A Pharmac spokesperson confirmed to Stuff that the influenza vaccines will remain free for those who qualify, despite there being a diminishing supply across the country.
Pharmac and the Ministry of Health have advised GPs – who have received the full supply of vaccinations – to limit inoculations to those most at risk – including pregnant women and the elderly.
In addition to receiving vaccination priority, those who fall within these demographics are entitled to the vaccination for free due to the current funding scheme.
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As per Pharmac’s criteria, those eligible for the funded vaccination include: pregnant women, people aged 65 and over, children under 4 years of age with serious respiratory illnesses, and people with severe asthma, heart disease, diabetes and other serious conditions that could make them susceptible to the virus.
Pharmac director of operations Lisa Williams said in a statement: “We need to focus on the groups most at risk, such as pregnant women.”
However, despite all vaccines being distributed to suppliers, not all of those “most at risk” will have access.
1 NEWS
Flu vaccine stocks are low after massive demand, with providers being told to channel supply to the most vulnerable.
Barbara McArdle, the national influenza co-ordinator from The Immunisation Advisory Centre said practices across the country have been asked to provide the centre with the amount of flu vaccinations they currently have available.
McArdle said pregnant women were probably at the “top of the list” for those in need of the vaccination. She added it was important for these women, no matter what trimester they were in, to get in touch with their doctor.
Vaccinations for pregnant women were ultimately “protecting two” – the mother and the baby – and offer protection for the child after it is born, McArdle said.
For those who aren’t eligible for the funded vaccination, it costs between $25 and $45 to purchase.
WHY IS THERE A NATIONWIDE SHORTAGE?
This year an increased demand has resulted in an early shortage across the country.
The current distribution – 1.29 million at the time of publishing – was the highest recorded number of vaccines distributed so early in winter, according to Williams.
That was only around 26 per cent of the whole population receiving the vaccination just 10 days into the cold season.
It was also in line with the total doses distributed throughout winter in 2018, and was higher than distributions in 2016 and 2017, according to Pharmac.
A Pharmac spokesperson explained the shortage wasn’t a result of New Zealand having fewer vaccines available overall, instead, it was the increased uptake of Kiwis receiving the vaccination that caused the shortage.
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The nation-wide shortage of the influenza vaccine won’t affect the free inoculations for the country’s most vulnerable.
There was no current “national stockpile” of vaccines available, with Pharmac confirming all available influenza vaccinations have been distributed to medical practitioners around New Zealand.
“We would much rather have vaccines out in the community, than sitting in a national stockpile,” Williams said.
WILL MORE VACCINES COME AVAILABLE?
The vaccination requires the correct influenza strain for New Zealand, meaning any additional supplies must be sourced from another southern hemisphere market.
Pharmac explained that at this time, it was unlikely more vaccinations will be obtained from Australia, as there was also very high demand for the vaccine across the ditch.
“Demand for the influenza vaccine is an international issue; Australia has also experienced a very high demand this year, and unfortunately, there is no surplus stock available for us to source from Australia.”
The Ministry of Health’s deputy director of public health Dr Hariette Carr said the ministry would “continue to work with Pharmac on the possibility of sourcing new stock”.
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Pharmac and the Ministry of Health have advised GPs – who have received the full supply of vaccinations – to limit inoculations to those most at risk, including children under 4 with serious respiratory illnesses.
Stuff
