Meningitis Now Urges MenB Shots for Teens After 1 Oxfordshire Death

6 articles · Updated · BBC.com · May 16

Lewis Waters, a sixth-form student at The Henley College, died this week after contracting meningitis, and Meningitis Now called for MenB vaccination to be extended to teenagers and young adults.
One case has been confirmed as MenB, while two other pupils in Reading are being treated and tested; UKHSA said all three were linked through a social network and close contacts are being offered precautionary antibiotics.
MenB is not part of the NHS routine schedule for teenagers and young adults, and the charity said cost-effectiveness concerns have blocked wider use despite a roughly 75% drop in disease among under-ones after the vaccine's introduction.
DHSC said the JCVI is reviewing eligibility for routine MenB vaccination after the Canterbury outbreak; England records about 300 to 400 meningococcal cases a year, with babies, teenagers and young adults most affected.

As meningitis claims another young life, is the UK's vaccine policy putting a price on the lives of its teenagers?

With a new 5-in-1 meningitis vaccine available, why does the UK still leave teenagers exposed to the deadliest B strain?