RSV vaccine to be available for vulnerable Australians aged 50 to 59

Vulnerable Australians aged 50 to 59 are being urged to take the opportunity to get vaccinated against a virus that has already seen 9266 Queensland cases reported this year.

Vulnerable Australians aged 50-59 will be able to receive a vaccine for respiratory syncytial virus (RSV).

The Therapeutic Goods Association recently expanded approval for the RSV vaccine AREXVY to include Australians aged 50 and older with chronic health and respiratory conditions. Vulnerable people aged over 59 already have ­access to the vaccine.

The virus causes an infection in the lungs and airways, with most people likely to experience mild to severe cold-like symptoms – 9266 cases of RSV have already been reported in Queensland this year.

RSV is considered to be severe for young children and babies, but for people with chronic health conditions, the repercussions can also be far greater.

The vaccine is currently free for pregnant women and infants under 2.

Hospitalisation rates in 50-64-year-olds with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) are 10 times higher, and with asthma, eight times higher than those without chronic medical conditions.

For Brisbane nurse Kerry Hall, her RSV diagnosis in 2017 led her to become the “sickest she had ever been”.

Kerry Hall was diagnosed with RSV, she said it was the sickest she had ever felt. Now she is urging Queenslanders to get the jab, with the TGA having approved the vaccine for 50-59-year-olds with chronic health conditions. Photo Steve Pohlner

Ms Hall, 57, took six weeks to completely recover from RSV, likely because she had an existing lung condition – excessive dynamic airway collapse.

“It originally started as just a dry cough and fever, but it just kept getting worse. I ended up with three different antibiotics and steroids over the course of it,” Ms Hall said. “My ribs and back were so sore from coughing … You can’t sleep, and you are just constantly in pain.”

Ms Hall stressed the importance of the newly expanded vaccine access.

“Vaccinations can help alleviate or lessen symptoms if you do get sick. So it is good that more and more vaccines are being made available to this age group, as the population ages and we live longer. It also helps with the burden on the health system,” she said.

Queensland infectious disease expert Paul Griffin said the vaccine announcement was a “really significant step forward”. “So it is important that people understand the risks are significant from RSV, and that is why we are encouraging ­people to do something to address that, and that is what this vaccine can certainly do.”

Lung Foundation general manager of policy, advocacy and prevention Paige Preston welcomed the TGA’s approval of a vaccine for younger generations with medical conditions. “It is great news that the TGA has approved this for those people with lung conditions. Having access to this vaccine will reduce the severity of the disease.”

The vaccine would be given as a single dose and can be ­administered with any influenza vaccine.

Originally published as RSV vaccine to be available for vulnerable Australians aged 50 to 59