Andalusia began its campaign on Monday, 21 September, to immunise children under six months against respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), the main cause of bronchiolitis and other respiratory infections. Antonio Sanz, the regional government’s first vice-president and minister for the Presidency, Health and Emergencies, said the aim was to match the previous campaign’s coverage, when 55,000 infants—96% of all newborns in Andalusia—were immunised. The regional government has allocated €15.2 million to the campaign. Since it began in 2023, 165,737 infants in Andalusia have received immunisation against RSV.
Sanz said immunisation uses a single dose of the medicine nirsevimab. He estimated that the three previous campaigns had prevented about 6,000 children under six months from being admitted to Andalusian hospitals for bronchiolitis.
The campaign is for all children under six months, premature infants under 12 months, and children under two with cardiac, respiratory, neuromuscular or immune-system conditions. The Andalusian Health Service has begun contacting parents of babies born between 1 April and 30 September to arrange appointments at primary care centres. Babies born from 1 October 2026 through 31 March 2027 will be immunised in hospital maternity wards before discharge. Premature infants under one year who were born before 35 weeks of pregnancy, and children under two with very high-risk conditions, will also be contacted and offered appointments at primary care centres or the hospitals treating them.
Sanz said the campaign’s main new feature is that babies born from 1 October 2026 at private centres will be given the dose in a single visit, without an appointment, at their first in-person contact with the public health system. They can receive it at the public primary care centre nearest their home, regardless of whether they are registered with the public system, have private cover or are covered by a mutual scheme.
Sanz encouraged parents to have their children immunised. He said the medicine was safe, effective and free, and that it helps prevent bronchiolitis and pulmonary complications. He also said it reduces pressure on emergency services, paediatric hospital care and primary care. According to Sanz, the medicine has been shown to reduce hospital admissions for RSV bronchiolitis by 80% among babies under six months in Andalusia and in other regions and countries where it is used. For babies who are nevertheless admitted, he said, it substantially reduces the risk of serious complications and admission to paediatric intensive care.
The estimated number of children eligible for immunisation, based on births in the previous year, is 55,735 across Andalusia: 6,100 in Almería; 7,200 in Cádiz; 4,950 in Córdoba; 6,300 in Granada; 3,350 in Huelva; 3,800 in Jaén; 10,600 in Málaga; and 13,435 in Seville.