Immunisation Weekly Update:

1. Changes to the adult pneumococcal vaccination schedule on 1 July 2026 
2. Measles alert for Sydney Airport and Sydney CBD 
3. RSV Awareness Week: Don’t Let Them Go Unprotected 
4. Diphtheria vaccination for travellers 
5. Education 

Changes to the adult pneumococcal vaccination schedule on 1 July 2026 

From 1 July 2026, the 21-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (21vPCV), Capvaxive®, will be introduced on the National Immunisation Program (NIP) and the adult immunisation schedule will be updated. 

Pre-order the new NSW Immunisation Schedule July 2026 poster for your clinic – indicate size preference (A3 or A4) and quantity required. 

Key changes: 

• Capvaxive® will replace Prevenar 13® and Pneumovax 23® on the NIP for adults. 

• Capvaxive® is recommended and free through the NIP (from 1 July) for: 

• Adults aged 65 years and over 

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander adults aged 25 years and over 

• Adults aged 18 years and over with specified medical conditions that increase their risk of severe disease. 

• These changes lower the age at which people are recommended for pneumococcal vaccination, simplify the vaccine schedule, and cover more strains of the disease. 

The Department of Health, Disability and Ageing has released the following advice. 

• Adult pneumococcal vaccination – Program advice for health professionals 

• Pneumococcal vaccination – Consumer fact sheet 

Further information and resources will be available on the Department’s website the week before the program change on 1 July 2026. 

To support this schedule change, NCIRS will be hosting a webinar on Wednesday 24 June 2026 from 12pm – 1.30pm (AEST). The webinar will provide information about the program changes, the burden of disease, and the safety and effectiveness of pneumococcal vaccines. Visit the NCIRS website for more information and to register. 

Measles alert for Sydney Airport and Sydney CBD 

NSW Health is advising people to be alert for signs and symptoms of measles after being notified of a confirmed case from Queensland who visited several locations across Sydney CBD while unknowingly infectious. 

A full list of locations is available on the NSW Health website. Exposure locations and times are updated regularly.  

People who attended these locations should watch for symptoms of measles. These locations do not pose an ongoing risk.  

There have been 49 cases confirmed in NSW since 1 January 2026. 

RSV Awareness Week: Don’t Let Them Go Unprotected 

RSV Awareness Week is being held from 7-13 June 2026 with the theme Don’t let them go unprotected.  

As health professionals, it’s important that you raise awareness about RSV and its impact, as well as champion RSV protection for infants and older adults. By promoting RSV vaccinations for pregnant women and older adults, you can help protect Australia’s most vulnerable. 

There are two RSV vaccines funded in NSW: 

• Abrysvo: Funded for pregnant women from 28 weeks of gestation 

• Arexvy: Funded for all adults aged 75 and above, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people aged 60 and above  

The monoclonal antibody Nirsevimab (Beyfortus) is also funded at birth for babies up to 6 months who are born to a mother: 

• who did not get the RSV vaccine Abrysvo® during pregnancy 

• who had the RSV vaccine Abrysvo® less than 2 weeks before giving birth 

• who has severe immunosuppression 

Children up to 24 months of age entering their second/subsequent RSV season who have risk conditions for severe RSV disease have a second dose funded.  

For more information, and to download RSV resources, visit the Immunisation Foundation of Australia’s RSV Awareness Week Website  

Diphtheria vaccination for travellers 

Travellers to diphtheria outbreak areas should consider a booster dose of diphtheria-containing vaccine if they have not had a dose in the last five years; particularly those visiting remote Aboriginal communities.  

Current outbreak affected areas are: 

• any location in the Northern Territory 

• the Kimberley, Goldfields and Pilbara regions in Western Australia 

• the far northwest of South Australia 

NSW Health is funding a dTpa (Boostrix) dose for Aboriginal people going to an outbreak area who have not had a dose of diphtheria vaccine in the last 5 years. A Boostrix dose is also funded for all Aboriginal people in NSW who have not a dose of diphtheria vaccine in the last 10 years, irrespective of travel plans.  

Boostrix for non-Indigenous travellers to affected areas is not funded by NSW Health. 

For further details, read the full NSW Health advice here. 

Education