More than six thousand local people have signed an official petition which would grant free meningitis B vaccinations for primary school children in Dorset.
Thousands of local parents are not satisfied with the current policy which only allows children under the age of one to be vaccinated against meningitis B on the NHS, they are calling for this to be extended to children up to the age of 11.
A meningitis expert claimed that it was still challenging to make people aware of the meningitis issue. Sue Davie, Chief Executive from Meningitis Now, said,
“This petition is not only opening up the discussion on the vaccine, but also educating more people about the disease, which is really great for us.”
Parents of children who cannot be inoculated against meningitis B for free, have to think about going privately. However, they face the combined impact of short supply of the vaccine and a high price in the market.
Bournemouth parents continue to express their concerns. One said, “I have a two year old daughter, and it’s a lot of money to give her the vaccine privately. I am thinking about it, because I know the risk is getting quite high for her, but if all children can get it from the NHS, that would be easier.”
Another said, “It should definitely be free on the NHS, because it’s something that every child needs. I have a newborn baby and it’s free for her to get it, but for those who can’t, the price is ridiculously high.”
The number of people signing the petition in Dorset is still increasing, whilst the amount of supporters has reached over 776,000 across the country.
