This year’s national vaccination catch-up campaign will focus on measles, mumps, rubella and varicella (MMR/V), NHS England has said.
GPs are contractually required to participate in the campaign, which NHS England said was prompted by recent measles outbreaks and the removal of England’s elimination status.
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Two children have died this year from measles amidst ongoing outbreaks, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said last week.
The catch-up campaign will run from June 2026 to March 2027 and will require GP practices to undertake local call and recall for eligible individuals aged 12 months to less than six years who are missing one or two doses of MMR/V.
Practices are also asked to support requests for vaccination of individuals aged six years up to and including 11 years.
In addition, a selective catch-up of varicella vaccination was agreed as part of the MMRV rollout in January. This is for eligible individuals who have not yet had a chickenpox infection or two doses of varicella vaccination and will run from Sunday 1 November 2026 to Friday 31 March 2028.
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GP practices will receive an item of service payment of £12.06 for each vaccination administered, NHS England said, adding that additional funding can also be earned via QOF indicators VI002 and VI003.
Last year’s catch-up campaign, which ran between September and March, focused on HPV vaccinations in under-25s.
This follows the announcement of a one-off meningitis B (MenB) vaccination programme for all Year 13 students and those under 25 starting university for the first time to be delivered by community pharmacies.
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The first dose will be offered from the end of July and the second dose given in August.
A version of this article was first published on our sister title, Pulse.
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