Overview

• NHS England will offer single-dose nirsevimab from late September to protect around 7,000 infants born before 32 weeks or with complex health conditions.
• Clinical trials show nirsevimab delivers over 80 percent protection against RSV for six months, replacing monthly palivizumab injections with roughly 55 percent efficacy.
• Maternal RSV vaccination continues from 28 weeks of pregnancy after its summer 2024 rollout, but uptake remains around 50 percent in England and Scotland.
• Premature babies face three times higher odds of hospitalisation and ten times greater need for intensive care when infected with RSV than full-term newborns.
• The combined use of maternal jabs and infant antibody shots reflects the NHS 10 Year Health Plan’s focus on shifting from treatment to prevention.