Experts Urge Immediate Meningitis B Vaccine for Teens Amid Growing Concerns of Outbreak in the UK

HEALTH leaders have today urged the NHS to offer a “vital” meningitis B vaccine to teenagers in a bid to stop the deadly outbreak spreading.

Two students have tragically died with 13 others hospitalised with meningitis following an in .

Hundreds more students have been spotted lining up across the University of Kent campus for the second day of immunisationsCredit: PA

The UK Security Agency (UKHSA) has already said that some cases seen in Kent are MenB, with others confirmed “when we have the full results”.

MenB is the UK’s most common cause of meningococcal .

But routine vaccination against the strain for babies and young children only began in 2015.

This means the current generation of and students are not covered – and were other strains when they were aged 13 or 14.

The MenB jab is and supermarket pharmacies, yet parents may have to pay up to £220 for their children to receive it.

Experts say this is because it was not deemed cost effective enough to offer to teenagers on the NHS and supplies currently may be too low to offer to all young adults.

Health leaders, have however, argued that the current outbreak demonstrates how deadly meningitis B can be and teens should be offered the “vital” jab.

Professor Andrew Preston, from the University of Bath, told Sun Health: “When the MenB vaccine became available in 2015, it was turned down because of the cost-benefit analysis, because you’d be vaccinating a vast number of babies to prevent a relatively small number of cases of disease – even though they were very, very serious disease.

“It was only really the public campaign against that that caused the overturn. It was an emotive decision.

“So nothing has changed in terms of the economic argument for the rollout for the adolescents.”

But, he added: “Two deaths and a dozen more ill – it’s a pretty powerful statement as to the potential impact of the disease.

“The other thing you have to watch out for is the supply of the vaccine,” says Professor Preston.

18-year-old Juliette, a sixth form student, tragically died after contracting meningitisCredit: SUPPLIED

“It’s not the easiest of vaccines to make. It’s not like mRNA where you can just churn out billions of doses.

“There’s not that many suppliers of MenB. It’s not used worldwide.

“So you’ve got to be careful that you don’t create a supply and demand issue that would affect the infant vaccination schedule.

“We give several doses of the type B vaccine to the babies, so would we need several doses to give to adolescents to make them immune? Because then that would be logistically quite a problem as well.”

Type B can’t just be added on to the MenAWCY vaccine, because they are different types of .

The proportion of all cases has gotten higher because other strains have died out with vaccinations.

“Type B is 83 per cent of cases and if you compare that to years ago, it would have been a much lower percentage.

“But that’s not because type B cases have increased, it’s because all the other ones have disappeared.”

“It was in the thousands, and they’ve been eradicated.

“That doesn’t lessen the impact of a single type B case – it causes death, permanent lifelong consequences. It’s a truly scary disease.”

Other experts also cautioned that not all strains of meningitis B specifically are covered by the vaccine, meaning it may not protect people against the current outbreak.

Professor Adam Finn, professor emeritus of paediatrics at the University of , said: “Whether the Bexsero or Trumenba vaccines – also known as ‘MenB vaccines’ – should be being used in this setting or more generally will depend upon characterisation of the strain causing the outbreak.

“Not all strains of MenB are covered by these vaccines and they can also protect against some strains that are not MenB.

“Calling them MenB vaccines is therefore a bit of a misnomer- but we call them that because they are the only vaccines that protect against most MenB strains.

“It’s also important to recognise that protection by the vaccine takes some time, days to weeks, unlike which work within hours.

“Protection by the vaccine also lasts for some years but not forever.

“The MenB vaccines do not also reduce transmission of the bacterium.”

It comes as pharmacy leaders have urged the NHS to “urgently commission” a meningitis B jab programme for teenagers who may be at risk.

Dr Leyla Hannbeck, CEO of the Independent Pharmacies Association said: “The Independent Pharmacies Association is calling on the NHS to urgently commission pharmacies to deliver a nationwide catch-up vaccination programme targeted at university students and teenagers born before 2015.

“There is not a moment to be lost in protecting young people across the country.

“Pharmacies, especially in Kent, are seeing a surge in demand for private Meningitis B vaccinations.

“But supplies are running low with some pharmacies already out of stock.

The MenB jab is available privately at high street and supermarket pharmaciesCredit: Getty – Contributor

“Worried families must not be left to a lottery. The NHS needs to step in and commission a national pharmacy led catch-up programme now.”

The Meningitis Now has also launched a campaign calling for meningitis B jabs to be given to those most at risk plus a booster programme to protect adolescents from 2030.

The charity said: “We are launching a new campaign – ‘No Plan B for men B’ – to address the rising concern of men B in teens and young people who are unvaccinated.

“During the , cases of meningitis fell to an all-time low in the UK.

‘In the years following, cases of men B disease have been increasing among teenagers and young people.

“We have effective, life-saving vaccines against men B, which have been offered to babies on the NHS vaccination programme since 2015.

“However, those born before 2015 are mostly unvaccinated against men B.

‘We believe the men B vaccine should be offered to teenagers and young people. It is vital that we protect this at-risk age group.

“There is no other way to prevent men B disease.”

Currently, two students are known to have tragically died, while 13 remain in hospital with the illness following the outbreak in Kent.

One victim was Juliette Kenny, an 18-year-old sixth form student at Queen Elizabeth’s Grammar School in Faversham who died on Saturday.

Many students were socially distancing in Covid-esque queuesCredit: Gary Stone Pictures show paramedics in hazmat gear on campus over the weekendCredit: The Sun

Her father Michael told the the family were ‘beyond devastated and they have no words to express their loss’.

Three and Kent University have confirmed cases, with in-person exams and assessments cancelled at the university.

Health officials are now working to curb the spread, tracing and treating thousands of potential contacts as reports of suspected cases spread.

The operation was launched at the University of Kent on Sunday after the UKHSA was alerted to a “cluster of cases” in the area on Saturday night.

Investigations are focused on popular venue Club Chemistry – a three-storey self-described “super club” – in Canterbury.

More than 2,000 revellers are said to have visited the venue across the weekend linked to the outbreak.

Health bosses have urged anyone who went to the club on March 5, 6 or 7 to get “preventative antibiotic treatment as a precautionary measure”.