BOOTS UK was this week expecting to introduce a limited quantity of the meningococcal (Men B) vaccination, which was stalled in January because of a global shortage.

The Men B vaccine, Bexsero, was added to the NHS childhood immunisation programme last September but, controversially, is only offered to babies born on or after May 1, 2015, meaning that thousands of under-fives in the UK are not protected from this life-threatening disease.

Recent data published by Public Health England shows that 57 per cent of all Men B cases in 2014/2015 occurred in children in this age group and as Men B is fatal in one-in-10 cases, there is a real urgency for children to be protected.

Boots UK first launched the service in November 2015 and offers the vaccine privately at £95 per dose.

Liz Brown, chief executive at leading meningitis charity Meningitis Now, said: “We welcome the fact that supplies of the lifesaving Men B vaccine is returning to Boots UK and other private clinics and hope that this will put downward pressure on pricing and reduce the over-inflated fees being asked in some practices.

“While we recognise and acknowledge that there is a large group of parents that are willing and able to pay for the vaccine privately, we know that there are many that can’t afford to pay.

“In April, the Government decided to ignore the wishes of 823,000 people who had signed the biggest-ever parliamentary petition calling for the meningococcal B (Men B) vaccine to be extended to all under-fives. Add your child’s name to our open letter to Jeremy Hunt and give children a voice in the ongoing campaign to get them protected at meningitisnow.org/addyourvoice.”

Boots UK is donating £1 from every jab to Meningitis Now, to help make a difference to the important role the charity plays in funding critical research into the disease and the support they give to families who have been affected.

To register your child to receive the vaccine through Boots UK, visit boots.com.

Meningitis Now, which is celebrating its 30th anniversary this year, is the UK’s leading charity working to save lives and rebuild the futures of people affected by meningitis through ongoing research, support and awareness.