The Government will launch its 2024-25 Seasonal Influenza Vaccination Programmes on Thursday, with Secretary for Health Prof Lo Chung-mau today urging the public to receive vaccination early.

The health chief said now is the best time to get vaccinated for effective protection in the coming year against the winter or summer influenza strains predicted by the World Health Organization.

The health chief today received vaccinations against seasonal influenza and COVID-19 at Sai Wan Ho General Out-patient Clinic, along with other health officials and frontline healthcare workers.

Prof Lo said Seasonal influenza vaccination (SIV) is one of the most effective means to prevent seasonal influenza and its complications.

“To boost the SIV coverage rate among schoolchildren, special arrangements have been made under the Seasonal Influenza Vaccination School Outreach Programme this year to offer a more flexible choice of vaccine options for kindergartens and childcare centres.”

He explained that kindergartens and childcare centres can offer injectable inactivated influenza vaccines or nasal vaccines in their outreach vaccination activities.

The Department of Health will also roll out a pilot scheme in which nasal vaccines will be provided to primary and secondary schools that indicated a preference for them earlier this year.

At present, around 870 kindergartens and childcare centres, around 610 primary schools and around 390 secondary schools have arranged vaccination activities for their students, according to the Health Bureau.

Prof Lo called on schools that have yet to join the outreach vaccination programme to enrol as soon as possible.

Separately, he added that individuals in high-risk priority groups should receive an additional COVID-19 booster no less than six months after their last dose, or infection with COVID-19 infection – whichever occurred later – to enhance protection and reduce the risk of serious complications and death.