Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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490. To ask the Minister for Health the estimated cost of making the shingles vaccine free of charge to at risk cohorts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45881/24]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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Shingles vaccination is not currently provided as part of the national immunisation programme but it is open to any individual who is aged 50 years and older and who wishes to receive the vaccine to consult with their GP or pharmacist.

The shingles vaccine is not available through the medical card or drug payment schemes.

The ages at which vaccines are recommended in the national immunisation programme are chosen by NIAC in order to give each individual the best possible protection against vaccine preventable diseases.

The Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA) recently carried out a Health Technology Assessment (HTA) on the herpes zoster vaccine which protects against shingles. A HTA is a multidisciplinary research process that collects and summarises information about a health technology. The information can cover a range of fields, including clinical effectiveness and safety, cost-effectiveness and budget impact, organisational and social aspects, and ethical and legal issues. The information is collected and presented in a systematic, unbiased and transparent manner.

HIQA published the HTA on 19 July 2024. The HTA found that adding the shingles vaccine to the schedule is not cost effective and is associated with a substantial budget impact. My Department has considered its findings and determined that the introduction of the vaccine can be reconsidered when cost effectiveness is more favourable.

HIQA's HTA estimated that the five-year incremental budget for eligible immunocompromised persons, as recommended by NIAC (with 100% coverage), was estimated at €56.2 million.

The HTA estimated the five-year incremental budget impact of a shingles vaccination programme with 50% uptake for

• adults as they turn 65 years old (no catch-up for older adults) would be €53.3 million;
• all adults aged 65 years and older as recommended by the National Immunisation Advisory Committee (NIAC) would be €218 million.

Colm Brophy (Dublin South West, Fine Gael)
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491. To ask the Minister for Health the estimated cost of making the RSV vaccine free of charge to at risk cohorts; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [45882/24]

Stephen Donnelly (Wicklow, Fianna Fail)
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The Government recently provided approval for an infant Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Immunisation Pathfinder Programme which will run between September 2024 and February 2025.

All newborn infants born during the programme will be offered immunisation against RSV after birth on site in Irish maternity hospitals. This immunisation will protect newborn infants when they are most vulnerable to the complications of RSV during the winter period when infection rates are at their highest.

As well as protecting newborn infants, this programme will help maintain health service capacity during this coming winter season. The programme is based on NIAC advice and is a temporary programme put in place as an interim measure pending the outcome of a Health Technology Assessment on RSV immunisation for infants and adults currently being undertaken by the Health Information and Quality Authority (HIQA).

A HTA is a multidisciplinary research process that collects and summarises information about a health technology. The information can cover a range of fields, including clinical effectiveness and safety, cost-effectiveness and budget impact, organisational and social aspects, and ethical and legal issues. The information is collected and presented in a systematic, unbiased and transparent manner.

As well as protecting infants against serious illness, this pathfinder programme also offers the HSE an opportunity to establish working mechanisms and to evaluate the programme. It is a strategic initiative designed to explore innovative approaches to improving health outcomes within a community or population. Such programmes often serve as pilots or models that, if successful, can be scaled up and replicated in other settings.

The outcome of the HTA, and learnings from the pathfinder programme once complete, will inform the development of any longer-term programme and future decision making on the matter of RSV immunisation in Ireland.

In relation to the estimated full-year cost for the RSV immunisation programme, HIQA's Rapid HTA on RSV immunisation, published on 13th of August 2024, found that the cost of immunising infants could be expected to range from €3.9 million to €19 million, depending on the approach taken. The HTA also found that aside from the cost of providing immunisation, there would also be additional costs associated with organising any RSV immunisation programme, which HIQA estimated could cost approximately €2.3 million.