§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will issue new advice to practitioners who are immunising against Meningitis C to take account of possible adverse reactions. [126254]
§ Yvette Cooper[holding answer 19 June 2000]: The Deputy Chief Medical Officer wrote to all practitioners immunising against Meningitis C on 13 June 2000, with further advice about possible adverse reactions; a copy is in the Library.
The safety of all new medicines, including vaccines, is continuously monitored by the Medicines Control Agency. Advice is sought from the independent expert advisory committees, the Committee on Safety of Medicines and Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation, when appropriate. Advice to prescribers is contained in the 281W Summary of Product Characteristics and to patients in the Patient Information Leaflet. Product information is updated as necessary.
§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what measures he is taking in his evaluation of the Meningitis C immunisation programme to ensure that he receives an accurate assessment of the numbers of individuals who may be suffering an adverse reaction. [126255]
§ Yvette Cooper[holding answer 19 June 2000]: In October 1999 a letter from the Chief Medical Officer advised doctors and pharmacists to report all suspected adverse reactions to the new meningococcal C vaccine to the Medicines Control Agency via the yellow card scheme. In December 1999, following the Committee on Safety of Medicines' advice, nurses were also invited to report suspected adverse reactions to this vaccine via the yellow card scheme. The Medicines Control Agency continuously monitors the safety of all medicines including Meningitis C vaccine. Various data sources are used including spontaneous reports of suspected reactions from health professionals, clinical trials, epidemiological studies and regular safety update reports from manufacturers. This post-licensing monitoring follows the detailed safety and efficacy trials of meningococcal C vaccine undertaken before the vaccine was licensed.
§ Mr. DrewTo ask the Secretary of State for Health if he will produce a report on the immunisation programme against Meningitis C, including reported incidents of side effects. [126253]
§ Yvette Cooper[holding answer 19 June 2000]: The Department intends to produce a report of the meningitis C campaign after the catch-up programme is complete. The report will cover all aspects, including adverse reactions. A report along these lines was produced after the last major immunisation campaign in the United Kingdom, the measles/rubella (MR) campaign of 1994, when about 8 million children in the UK aged five to 16 were immunised.