Appendix A: groups included in the national influenza immunisation programme - GOV.UK - ISS-G20 Laboratorium Repository

Please refer to the Statement of amendments to annual flu letter published on 21 July 2022 for changes to the NHS influenza immunisation programme 2022 to 2023.

For the 2022 to 2023 influenza season, vaccinations will be offered under the NHS influenza immunisation programme to the following groups:

• all children aged 2 to 3 years on 31 August 2022
• all primary school aged children (from Reception to year 6)
• people aged 65 years or over (including those becoming age 65 years by 31 March 2023)
• those aged from 6 months to less than 65 years of age in a clinical risk group such as those with:
  • chronic (long-term) respiratory disease, such as asthma (requires continuous or repeated use of inhaled or systemic steroids or with previous exacerbations requiring hospital admission), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) or bronchitis
  • chronic heart disease, such as heart failure
  • chronic kidney disease at stage 3, 4 or 5
  • chronic liver disease
  • chronic neurological disease, such as Parkinson’s disease or motor neurone disease
  • learning disability
  • diabetes
  • splenic dysfunction or asplenia
  • a weakened immune system due to disease (such as HIV/AIDS) or treatment (such as cancer treatment)
  • morbidly obese (defined as BMI of 40 and above)
• all pregnant women (including those women who become pregnant during the influenza season)
• household contacts of immunocompromised individuals, specifically individuals who expect to share living accommodation on most days over the winter and, therefore, for whom continuing close contact is unavoidable
• people living in long-stay residential care homes or other long-stay care facilities where rapid spread is likely to follow introduction of infection and cause high morbidity and mortality. This does not include, for instance, prisons, young offender institutions, university halls of residence, or boarding schools (except where children are of primary school age)
• those who are in receipt of a carer’s allowance, or who are the main carer of an older or disabled person whose welfare may be at risk if the carer falls ill
• frontline staff without employer led occupational health schemes, employed by a registered residential care or nursing home or registered domiciliary care provider, who are directly involved in the care of vulnerable patients or clients who are at increased risk from exposure to influenza
• frontline staff without employer led occupational health schemes, employed by a voluntary managed hospice provider, who are directly involved in the care of vulnerable patients or clients who are at increased risk from exposure to influenza
• frontline staff without employer led occupational health schemes employed through Direct Payments (personal budgets) and/or Personal Health Budgets, such as Personal Assistants, to deliver domiciliary care to patients and service users

Organisations should vaccinate all frontline health care workers and social care workers, in order to meet their responsibility to protect their staff and patients and ensure the overall safe running of services. There are limited circumstances where social care workers without access to an employer led occupational health scheme can access the vaccine on the NHS.

The list above is not exhaustive, and the healthcare professional should apply clinical judgement to take into account the risk of influenza exacerbating any underlying disease that a patient may have, as well as the risk of serious illness from influenza itself.

Healthcare practitioners should refer to the influenza chapter in ‘Immunisation against infectious disease’ (the ‘Green Book’) for further detail about clinical risk groups advised to receive influenza immunisation and for full details on advice concerning contraindications and precautions for the influenza vaccines.

Entire content available on: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-flu-immunisation-programme-plan/appendix-a-groups-included-in-the-national-influenza-immunisation-programme