If you have a baby born this spring or summer, this is worth paying attention to. The HSE's RSV Infant Immunisation Programme for 2026-2027 is set to get under way from Tuesday 1 September, and babies born between 1 March and 31 August 2026 will be able to receive their free RSV immunisation through participating GP practices.
RSV — respiratory syncytial virus — is one of those winter illnesses that most parents have heard of but perhaps haven't worried too much about. For healthy older children and adults it typically causes a bad cold. But for young babies, particularly in their first winter, it can escalate quickly into something much more serious. We're talking bronchiolitis, lower respiratory tract infections, hospital admissions. The kind of thing no parent wants to navigate in the middle of the night with a tiny, wheezing baby.
The good news is that protection is available, it's free, and it works.
What the immunisation involves
RSV immunisation is given as a single dose of a medicine called nirsevimab which provides immediate, ready-made protection that lasts through the autumn and winter months, which is exactly when RSV circulates most heavily.
Crucially, it can be given safely alongside routine childhood vaccines, so parents don't need to delay or reschedule any of their baby's already-packed jab schedule. That's one less logistical headache, which is always welcome.
Who is eligible — and where to go
For the 2026-2027 programme:
Babies born between 1 September 2026 and 28 February 2027 will be offered RSV immunisation in maternity hospitals before they go home, where possible.
Babies born between 1 March and 31 August 2026 can receive RSV immunisation through participating GP practices from 1 September.
Babies at higher risk of serious RSV illness will be offered immunisation through a specialist pathway.
So if your little one arrived any time from March through to the end of August this year, your GP practice is the place to start. It's worth ringing ahead to confirm your GP is participating and to get an appointment booked in before the RSV season picks up properly.
The numbers speak for themselves
Last winter more than 37,000 infants in Ireland were immunised against RSV under the programme. The results were striking. RSV-related hospitalisations fell by 70% among babies born during the RSV season and across all eligible groups the programme is estimated to have averted over 1,000 emergency department presentations, hospitalisations and ICU admissions. That includes more than 550 ED presentations, 450 non-ICU hospitalisations and 40 ICU admissions — along with around 1,700 non-ICU hospital bed days and 300 ICU bed days that simply didn't need to happen.
Dr Chantal Migone, Consultant in Public Health Medicine at the HSE National Immunisation Office, put it plainly: "RSV immunisation protects babies during their first autumn and winter. It protects babies immediately and the protection lasts through autumn and winter — meaning babies are protected when RSV is circulating at highest levels. International evidence shows it is over 80% effective in preventing RSV-associated lower respiratory tract infections."
Dr Patrick Kelly of the Irish College of General Practitioners added: "We would encourage parents of babies who were born between March and August to take up the offer through participating GP practices ideally before the RSV season. Parents who have questions about RSV immunisation should speak to their healthcare professional, who can provide trusted information and advice."
If your baby is eligible, it's well worth getting in touch with your GP in the coming days so you're sorted well ahead of the season. For full details on eligibility and what to expect, visit HSE.ie/RSV.
