Britain facing flu jab shortage

Britain is facing a shortage of flu jabs, in the wake of increased fears about a possible pandemic, it has emerged.

David Salisbury, Head of Immunisation at the Department of Health, has issued a letter to GPs, advising them to administer remaining vaccines only to high-risk groups, such as the over-65s and those with serious conditions, such as diabetes, asthma and heart disease.

Dr Salisbury also urged GPs not to over-order vaccines and to inform the Department of Health of any spare stocks, so that they could be shared between practices.

In the letter, Dr Salisbury said that the Department of Health had ordered 14 million doses of the flu vaccine – 3 million more than was usually made available for those in high-risk groups to have the jab.

However, he said: “Many surgeries are now at the peak of their annual influenza immunisation campaigns. We have received feedback requesting supplies of influenza vaccine over and above the stocks they ordered from suppliers in the usual way to meet the needs of their campaign.”

Dr Salisbury said that there was “some concern” that some of the vaccines may have been used on the ‘worried well’, instead of high-risk groups.

There have been fears in recent months that the deadly strain of avian flu could mutate into a form that is transmissible between humans, creating a pandemic, which could result in thousands of deaths. However, the normal flu jab would offer no protection if a pandemic was to occur.

Dr Salisbury said that there were still pre-ordered doses of vaccine scheduled for delivery throughout the rest of November and into December.

He said that the Department of Health was trying to tackle the problem by issuing stock from its contingency reserve of 400,000 doses, but warned that this supply could “soon be exhausted”.

A further contingency stock of 200,000 doses has been ordered, Dr Salisbury said, but would not be delivered until late January.

However, Laurence Buckman, deputy chairman of the British Medical Association, said that there was “no evidence” that family doctors had been using the flu vaccine inappropriately. He said: “Patients will feel that they have been let down. GPs were told that there would be enough vaccine and now it seems this is not the case.”

Conservative Shadow Health Secretary Andrew Lansley said: “We have been concerned for sometime about the delay in supplies of flu vaccine and the risks to continuity of supply if demand were exceptionally high.

“Ministers have unfortunately failed to recognise the risk sufficiently, which has lead to the current situation.”

(KMcA/SP)