ABOUT BEXSERO
What is BEXSERO?
BEXSERO is a vaccine to help protect against meningococcal group B, the most common cause of meningococcal disease in NZ.3,4
Funding
From 1 March 2023, BEXSERO is funded on the National Immunisation Schedule. Ask your doctor or nurse if your child is eligible for funded BEXSERO. If your child is not eligible, BEXSERO is available for private purchase.
BEXSERO is funded for the following groups:5
Children up to 12 months of age
BEXSERO is part of the National Immunisation Schedule, meaning that all children up to 12 months of age (inclusive) are funded to receive three doses of BEXSERO. Funding is also available for children under 5 years of age as part of a catch-up programme, from 1 March 2023 to 31 August 2025.
Teens and young adults 13 to 25 years of age
Two doses of BEXSERO are funded for people aged 13 to 25 years (inclusive) who are entering within the next 3 months, or in their first year of specified close-living situations, including boarding school hostels and tertiary education halls of residence.
Please refer to the Pharmaceutical Schedule for details.
Dosing Schedule
BEXSERO offers a flexible vaccination schedule for babies, adolescents and adults.3
More than one dose of BEXSERO is required to be fully vaccinated against meningococcal B.3
BEXSERO Dosing Guide*3,6
| Age at first dose | Primary immunisation | Interval between primary doses | Booster |
| 2-11 months** | 2doses | ≥2months | 1 dosein second year of life (from 12 months of age) ≥6 months post primary series |
| 12-23months | 2doses | ≥2months | 1 dose12-23 months post primary series |
| Children >2 years, Adolescents and adults# | 2doses | ≥2months | Need not established† |
*The number of funded doses may differ. Refer to the Pharmaceutical Schedule for full funding criteria. BEXSERO can be administered at the same time as other vaccines, including those on the National Immunisation Schedule, in separate syringes and at separate injection sites.3,5
**The safety and efficacy of BEXSERO in infants less than 8 weeks of age has not yet been established.3
#The safety and efficacy of BEXSERO in individuals above 50 years of age have not been established.3
†1 booster dose may be considered in individuals at continued risk of exposure to meningococcal disease, based on official recommendations.3
What to expect
BEXSERO is given as an injection, usually into your or your child’s arm or leg muscle.3,14
In babies and toddlers, the most common adverse reactions are tenderness, redness at the injection site, fever and irritability.3 Fever can be expected after any vaccination, but is more common with BEXSERO, particularly when BEXSERO is administered at the same time as other vaccines3. The Immunisation Advisory Centre (IMAC) recommend the use of paracetamol with every dose of BEXSERO administered to children <2 years of age, regardless of the presence of fever.6,13
Before you or your child receives vaccination, ask your doctor or nurse about the risks of fever and how to treat it, including what to do if fever does not respond to initial treatment.14
In adolescents and adults, the most common adverse reactions are pain at the injection site, generally feeling unwell and headache.3
Other vaccines are available to help protect against meningococcal groups A,C, W and Y. There is no single vaccine which covers all the different groups.6
Some people would have received the MeNZB vaccine between 2008 and 2011. The MeNZB vaccine was temporarily introduced in NZ to control an epidemic of meningococcal B. The protection from this vaccine was not long-lasting, so even if your child received this vaccine, they are not expected to be protected against meningococcal B disease.6
about meningococcal disease
