Overview
- The 2026/27 GP contract, due to be unveiled this week, introduces improvement‑based incentives so practices showing progress receive resources to follow up with families of unvaccinated children.
- Officials cite an Enfield measles outbreak with about 50 confirmed cases to February 16, largely in unvaccinated children with some hospitalisations, alongside the UK’s loss of WHO measles elimination status in 2024.
- GP quality indicators will be updated to reflect the new schedule, with practices offering the combined MMRV vaccine at 12 and 18 months after varicella was added on January 1.
- Primary Care Networks must identify care home residents with overdue routine vaccinations, and practices will gain greater flexibility to collaborate on flu and COVID‑19 delivery.
- From April, the RSV programme extends to all adults aged 80 and over and all residents in older adult care homes, with GPs required to offer the jab and a new £2 million health‑visitor pilot targeting families facing barriers to vaccination.