Australia to offer free RSV vaccines to newborns and pregnant women in 2025, boosting protection.

Starting in 2025, Australia will provide free respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) vaccinations () for newborns and pregnant women.

Mark Butler, the minister for health, announced 174.5 million Australian dollars ($114.8 million) in funding to subsidize RSV vaccinations following a spike in cases in 2024. According to the government, 12,000 Australian babies are admitted to hospital every year with severe cases of RSV — a contagious virus mostly affecting young children that causes infections of the respiratory tract, reports Xinhua news agency.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) is a common respiratory virus that can cause mild, cold-like symptoms in most people. However, it can lead to severe illness, especially in infants, young children, older adults, and people with weakened immune systems. RSV spreads easily through droplets in the air when an infected person coughs or sneezes. While there’s no specific treatment for RSV, preventive measures like frequent handwashing and avoiding close contact with sick individuals can help reduce the risk of infection.

Under the new program, women who are between 28 and 36 weeks pregnant will be eligible for a free vaccine from February, giving protection to their unborn children.

Additionally, all children younger than two years whose mothers were not immunized during pregnancy will also be eligible for free vaccination in winter when RSV infections typically occur.

The maternal RSV vaccine is currently only available in Australia to women in the late stages of pregnancy and costs up to 350 AUD ($230.3). Australia has recorded over 165,000 cases of RSV so far in 2024, up from 128,117 in 2023 and 95,959 in 2022, according to data from the Department of Health’s National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System.

Of the 2024 cases, 82,048 were recorded in children aged 0-4 and another 14,016 in those aged 5-9.

Reference:

1. Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) – (https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/respiratory-syncytial-virus-rsv)

Source-IANS