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Qld joins meningo vax rush
Posted 21 February 2027
Queensland has joined the rush to secure a substantial quantity of the four-strain meningococcal vaccine, promising to fund 300,000 doses and further fuelling what has proven to be an unexpected sales boom for the three Australian vaccine suppliers.
Adding to what was reported last week as a windfall for Pfizer, Sanofi and GSK - the only Australian suppliers of the four-strain ACWY meningococcal vaccine - the addition of Queensland to the list of state governments funding large-scale vaccination programs is welcome news.
The Queensland government announced it had allocated $6 million to vaccinate 300,000 teenagers following an increase in meningococcal serogroup W and Y notifications in 2016. The 13 cases more than quadrupled the three cases reported five years previous.
As the ACWY vaccine is not listed on the National Immunisation Program, the large-scale state purchases further boost the unexpected profits of vaccine suppliers but also have the potential to exhaust stocks.
To date Pfizer has confirmed it is supplying Western Australia with its Nimenrix vaccine while Sanofi said it had won the contract to provide Menactra to NSW.
Sanofi was the only company able to fulfill the NSW contract requirement of 180,000 does by April and, while Queensland announced this week it also intended to commence its vaccination program in Term Two, it did not indicate which of the suppliers would fulfill its quota.
While saying it will fund 300,000 doses, Queensland has only committed to vaccinating Year 10 students through its school vaccination program and to making the vaccine available free through GPs for other teenagers. NSW is vaccinating Years 11 and 12.
The Victorian Government is yet to reveal where it is sourcing its vaccine quota after committing $7.1 million in funding. Menveo is tipped as the most likely choice given GSK's manufacturing facility is in Victoria, where it also makes Pfizer's Nimenrix.
The Queensland Department of Health did not respond to a request yesterday to identify where it would source its vaccine although Health Minister Cameron Dick echoed other state ministers in calling for the Federal Government to list the four-strain vaccine on the National Immunisation Program, thereby relieving the states of the financial burden.
"Queensland and other states have acted swiftly to protect teenagers however this has resulted in a patchwork immunisation regime across the country," he said.
Megan Brodie
megan.brodie@lushmedia.com.au
Posted 21 February 2027
Queensland has joined the rush to secure a substantial quantity of the four-strain meningococcal vaccine, promising to fund 300,000 doses and further fuelling what has proven to be an unexpected sales boom for the three Australian vaccine suppliers.
Adding to what was reported last week as a windfall for Pfizer, Sanofi and GSK - the only Australian suppliers of the four-strain ACWY meningococcal vaccine - the addition of Queensland to the list of state governments funding large-scale vaccination programs is welcome news.
The Queensland government announced it had allocated $6 million to vaccinate 300,000 teenagers following an increase in meningococcal serogroup W and Y notifications in 2016. The 13 cases more than quadrupled the three cases reported five years previous.
As the ACWY vaccine is not listed on the National Immunisation Program, the large-scale state purchases further boost the unexpected profits of vaccine suppliers but also have the potential to exhaust stocks.
To date Pfizer has confirmed it is supplying Western Australia with its Nimenrix vaccine while Sanofi said it had won the contract to provide Menactra to NSW.
Sanofi was the only company able to fulfill the NSW contract requirement of 180,000 does by April and, while Queensland announced this week it also intended to commence its vaccination program in Term Two, it did not indicate which of the suppliers would fulfill its quota.
While saying it will fund 300,000 doses, Queensland has only committed to vaccinating Year 10 students through its school vaccination program and to making the vaccine available free through GPs for other teenagers. NSW is vaccinating Years 11 and 12.
The Victorian Government is yet to reveal where it is sourcing its vaccine quota after committing $7.1 million in funding. Menveo is tipped as the most likely choice given GSK's manufacturing facility is in Victoria, where it also makes Pfizer's Nimenrix.
The Queensland Department of Health did not respond to a request yesterday to identify where it would source its vaccine although Health Minister Cameron Dick echoed other state ministers in calling for the Federal Government to list the four-strain vaccine on the National Immunisation Program, thereby relieving the states of the financial burden.
"Queensland and other states have acted swiftly to protect teenagers however this has resulted in a patchwork immunisation regime across the country," he said.
Megan Brodie
megan.brodie@lushmedia.com.au
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