The launch of the 2025/2026 immunization campaign will be marked with the vaccination of children at the Marvila Health Unit, at the Nascer e Crescer Clinic, part of the São José Local Health Unit in Lisbon. Present at the event will be the Director-General of Health, Rita Sá Machado, and the Secretary of State for Health, Ana Povo.
The immunization campaign will take place in public, private, and social sector maternity hospitals for children born between September 16, 2025, and March 31, 2026, as well as in primary healthcare and hospitals for children born between June 1 and September 15, 2025, including preterm children or those with other risk factors.
According to the Directorate-General of Health (DGS), the antibody will also be provided to children with increased risk factors for severe infection entering the second seasonal period and who have not reached 24 months by September 30, 2025, regardless of previous immunization in the former campaign.
The health authority emphasizes that this campaign aims to “protect infants in their first months of life and reduce individual susceptibility, disease burden, and impact on health services, particularly hospital emergency visits and admissions due to respiratory infections.”
“This will be the second season the monoclonal antibody against RSV is made available for free in pediatric age, following the autumn-winter 2024-2025 campaign, which marked a significant milestone in public health, achieving relevant and positive results in infection control and prevention,” it states.
In statements to the Lusa agency in April, Secretary of State for Health Ana Povo estimated that around 76,000 children will be covered in the vaccination campaign running until March 31, 2026.
During the last campaign, the goal was to protect approximately 62,000 children, representing an estimated 13.6 million euros investment by the Government, with babies aged zero to eight months being immunized.
According to the Secretary of State, there was an approximately 85% reduction in admissions to general wards and intensive care for children up to three months old, and a 40% reduction in babies between three and six months old.
