Chickenpox vaccine to be offered on the NHS

From January, all young children will be offered a free chickenpox vaccine by the NHS. The offer will be available across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. 

Cllr Stephen Williams, Chair of the Public Health and Communities Committee and Liberal Democrat Councillor for Westbury-on-Trym and Henleaze, said: 

“Offering a free chickenpox vaccine is a much welcome step to protect children from serious illness, and many more from discomfort and infections. It will also go some way to protect people from growing up and catching it later in life, when its effects can be much more acute and interfere with pre-existing conditions.

“As a council, we have recently sent a letter encouraging all parents to check that their child’s measles, mumps and rubella (MMR) vaccine is up to date before the return to school. We will continue this important campaign, and we can now include this positive news as part of it.

“Going forward, the Government should review what further vaccines can be offered to young people to tackle preventable diseases. Additionally, they should consider steps to address the concerning decline in vaccine uptake, starting with reversing Conservative cuts to public health funding.”

ENDS