With rising measles cases locally and abroad, it’s vital to stay informed and ready. Join us for a lunch and learn session that will cover measles epidemiology, who may be under-vaccinated (especially those born 1966–1994), free MMR vaccine access in NSW, travel-related recommendations, and how to navigate immunisation history records. Refresh your measles knowledge and help protect our community.
Date: 26 May 2025
Time: 12.30pm – 1.30pm
Audience: GPs, Nurses, Practice managers and staff, Pharmacists
Presented by: Dr Vicky Sheppeard, Director SESLHD Public Health Unit
Record number of flu cases in January to April period
High flu activity and suboptimal vaccine coverage in the year to date are pointing to a challenging flu season in Australia, and immunisation experts are urging health professionals and the public to prioritise vaccination.
The National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (NNDSS) has recorded 70,224 laboratory-confirmed influenza cases in Australia from 1 January to 30 April 2025 – a 58% increase on the same period of 2024 (44,320) and more than at the same point of any year since the NNDSS began collecting data in 1991. Data suggests Australia may be on the same trajectory as Europe and the US, who recently concluded severe flu seasons.
Vaccine uptake has also been sluggish – Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) data shows 4,055,034 influenza vaccines administered as of 4 May 2025, which is a decrease of 99,889 doses when compared to the same period in 2024. NCIRS coverage data shows that just 6.8% of children aged six months to less than five years and 4.8% of children aged five to less than fifteen years have been recorded as having received a flu shot. This follows a trend of declining vaccination coverage rates; in NSW, the influenza vaccination coverage for six-month to under five-year-olds has declined from 41.3 per cent in 2020 to 25.4 per cent in 2024.
Pharmacists can now provide influenza vaccine for children as young as two
To support the push for increased flu vaccine coverage rates, the NSW Pharmacist Vaccination Standards have been updated to allow pharmacists to provide the flu vaccine to children aged two and above. This is expected to improve access to the vaccine and relieve pressure on general practitioners as parents will be able to bring their children to get vaccinated closer to home and without having to wait for a GP appointment.
Please note that the NIPVIP is only available for vaccines administered for children aged over five, so pharmacists may charge a fee.
NSW Health Respiratory Illness campaign resources
The NSW Respiratory Surveillance Report is a great way to keep track of current virus activity levels in the community, including the latest data on respiratory illness notifications specific to your Local Health District.
NSW Health has developed the 2025 Respiratory Illness Campaign to promote behaviours that help people stay safe during winter, including how they can protect themselves and their loved ones through flu vaccination. Resources for this campaign can be found on the respiratory illness webpage, which provides links to factsheets and various other resources. You can order these resources for free here.
2025 influenza vaccination coverage data now live
NCIRS is monitoring and reporting flu vaccination coverage data throughout the 2025 respiratory illness season, including in comparison with previous years (2020–2024). See live data on their website.
General practices are encouraged to register for GoShare’s free Quality Improvement (QI) programs targeting pneumococcal and COVID-19 recall.
GoShare Pneumococcal Recall Program
People aged 70 and over are eligible for a free single dose of Prevenar 13 vaccine and a free annual dose of Fluad Quad vaccine on the NIP.
The GoShare 2025 Pneumococcal Vaccination Recall Program sends a free SMS recall to offer both the Fluad Quad and Prevenar 13 vaccines to eligible patients aged 70 years and over.
Register your practice here.
GoShare COVID-19 Recall Program
The GoShare COVID-19 Vaccination Recall Program sends a free, personalised SMS recall to patients aged 75 and over who received their last COVID-19 vaccine over six months ago.
The SMS template provided includes a link to information to help the patient understand why their age puts them at increased risk of serious illness from COVID-19 and a call to action to book an appointment at your practice.
Register your practice here.
A major expansion of the Australian Immunisation Handbook chapter on vaccination for people who are immunocompromised went live this week, in a significant enhancement of guidelines relating to a complex area of immunisation practice.
While overall recommendations have remained unchanged, the refreshed chapter now includes more detailed advice on vaccination in people with a wide range of medical conditions and levels of immunocompromise.
Eligibility criteria (expanded)
On 28 March, NSW Health sent a letter to GPs advising that the eligibility for the infant RSV immunisation has been expanded to include newborn infants born from 1 January 2025 (previously 17 March 2025) to receive nirsevimab. Vulnerable infants born 1 October 2024 to 31 December 2024 will continue to be offered nirsevimab if they meet the criteria for the NSW Vulnerable Babies Program. Refer to NSW RSV Prevention Program – Eligibility summary.
Clinical recommendations
Flow charts have been developed to assist providers to determine if an infant is clinically recommended to receive Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab). This does NOT necessarily mean they meet the eligibility criteria for NSW-funded Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab).
For infants born from 1 January 2025, refer to Clinical decision aid for nirsevimab (Beyfortus™) in newborn infants. For infants born prior to 1 January 2025, refer to Clinical decision aid for nirsevimab (Beyfortus™) in infants and children up to 24 months of age who remain at risk of severe RSV disease.
Ordering nirsevimab
Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab) can be ordered from the NSW Vaccine Centre using the updated nirsevimab special order form (up to 5 patients per order form). Providers must ensure that the infant meets NSW eligibility criteria for funded Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab) before placing order.
Note that eligible infants are offered Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab) prior to discharge from hospital, so there is expected to be a limited number of eligible infants presenting to GPs.
Non-eligible patients cannot access Beyfortus™ (nirsevimab) through private prescription – pharmacies do not have access to this product.
To strengthen vaccine delivery and improve visibility of residents’ vaccination records, facility and clinical managers within RCFs can now apply on behalf of their RCF to become recognised vaccination providers with the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR). This will allow them to access the AIR to check residents’ vaccination status and report vaccinations. It does not authorise them to administer vaccines.
An information sheet has been developed to support this process, and this should be reviewed by applicants before applying.
Key points:
Further information:
For further queries, contact: immunisation.registers@health.gov.au
NSW Health has recently made a new translated adult vaccinations resource available. The resource is translated into 14 languages other than English and provides key information about the adult immunisation schedule and where people can go to get vaccinated. It is currently available in PDF format and the NSW Health Digital Team is working to make HTML pages available for each language soon.
Health Referral Forms
