Children's vaccine for pneumococcal disease given a boost - Australia

The sole bright spot in the budget for Australia's drug industry is the decision to fund a catch-up program to protect children aged up to three against a wider range of strains of pneumococcal disease.

The move, costing $40.7 million over four years, follows a decision in February to provide the Prevenar 13 vaccine free of charge to children, as part of a three-dose course when babies are two, four and six months old.

Prevenar 13 protects children against 13 strains of pneumococcal disease -- nearly double the coverage of the existing Prevenar product, which only gives immunity to seven strains. The government included no provisions in its February announcement to allow older children to access the new vaccine, but the budget move means it will now be available to children who are between 12 and 35 months old who have completed a course of the original Prevenar vaccine.

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Source: The Australian newspaper