Free Flu Vaccinations for Children under 5 @ Pharmac

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Free Flu Vaccinations for Children under 5 @ Pharmac
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beatthatflight on 08/09/2026 - 10:04 pharmac.govt.nz (232 clicks)
Last edited 08/09/2026 - 10:12 by 1 other user

Deal: Free / Fully Funded Flu Vaccine for All Children Aged 6 Months to Under 5
Store: Participating GPs, Pharmacies, Hauora Māori Providers & Local Health Clinics (NZ-wide)
Price: $0 (Fully Funded)

It was mentioned on RNZ yesterday that under 5s are the most hospitalised cohort from Influenza this winter season.

Pharmac and Health New Zealand have brought forward funding for the seasonal influenza vaccine (Influvac Tetra) for all children aged 6 months up to their 5th birthday (6 to 59 months inclusive).

Previously, this expansion was only slated to take effect from the 2027 season, but due to a high surge in winter influenza hospitalisations among young children, Pharmac has fast-tracked immediate free access.

Eligibility Details
  • Who qualifies? All children aged 6 months up to under 5 years (no prior health conditions required).
  • Vaccine supplied: Influvac Tetra
  • Cost: $0 (No consult or admin fees for eligible age groups at participating providers).
Who Else Is Currently Eligible For A Free Flu Shot?
  • Everyone aged 65 and over.
  • Pregnant women (any trimester).
  • People under 65 with eligible medical conditions (e.g., severe asthma, diabetes, heart conditions).
How to Book
  1. Visit bookmyvaccine.health.nz to find local availability or walk-in clinics.
  2. Contact your local GP, pharmacy, Hauora Māori provider, or community health center.

Note: Stock has been confirmed available nationally, but checking with your preferred provider beforehand is recommended as clinics roll out bookings.

Official Source / Announcement: Pharmac News Release

Health & Beauty Children Vaccination

Related Stores

pharmac.govt.nz
pharmac.govt.nz

Comments

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  • butterworth on 08/09/2026 - 10:15

    Worth noting that not all pharmacies will do vaccinations for under 5 (I think it's a qualification thing). You may have to go to your medical centre if you have a young kid!

    • 3
    • mmaui on 08/09/2026 - 14:22

      I went to a Chemist Warehouse for a 3 y.o.; the pharmacist was qualified and it was fine.

      • 0
      • butterworth on 08/09/2026 - 14:23

        Oh cool. Must be dependent on their staff or something - I've been turned away from booking it at several pharmacies saying they only do over 12s or over 5s (both independent ones and Chemist Warehouse).

        • 0
    • MattyD on 08/09/2026 - 11:50

      What's wow?

      • 2
    • ABCDEFG on 08/09/2026 - 12:01

      eatingPopcorn.gif

      • -2
    • Makmak on 08/09/2026 - 12:10

      get out.gif

      • 1
  • Jaxson on 08/09/2026 - 13:44

    Given the recent Shingles post and the associated comments there; can we limit comments on this one to flu vaccine related content only please.

    • 0
    • Makmak on 09/09/2026 - 08:40

      Last Winter was horrible for our family in regards to colds and flu. This year was predicted to be even worse. I've seen this first hand with many families with young children.The respiratory illnesses going around right now are no joke. As soon as we could, me, my wife and our toddler were vaccinated for this year. In fact, our 3 year old son was more of a grown up about it than you it seems.

      You can keep sticking your head in the sand, that's entirely you're prerogative, but for the safety of tamariki, don't leave your caravan/hutt/off-grid tree house.

      • 1
  • beatthatflight on 08/09/2026 - 14:12

    Given the weather lately and the biggest flu outbreak in like 10 years in NZ apparently, I'm 100% in favour of mandatory vacations right now.

    • 4
    • spam on 08/09/2026 - 14:29

      and this happened to the poor lady recently: https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/alexandra-mum-on-life-support-…

      • 0
    • [Deactivated] on 08/09/2026 - 15:06

      Yeah I've just come out the other end, still have a bit of a persistent cough and worked out for the first time in just over 2 weeks the day before yesterday.

      Wouldn't recommend anyone gets it, absolutely miserable, sent this to my wife encouraging our 1.5 year old to get a shot (although he's already had it, he brought it home from daycare and infected us).

      Coincidentally I got a smart watch about a month and a half ago that does body temp, so have been tracking my fevers. 39'C became my new normal for a few of the days, record was 39.4C. Finally back to normal temps (sort of, I'm 37.7 right now) but I still have cold sweats at night.

      • 0
      • beatthatflight on 08/09/2026 - 16:35

        Awkwardly it was a joke - I didn't mention vaccinations ;) However I am very interested in the smart watch - did you measure and compare with say, an in-ear thermometer?

        I have one that does pulse, 'stress', O2 sats, but not temp and it seemed like that should be a fairly easy 'win'.

        • 0
        • [Deactivated] on 08/09/2026 - 17:45

          This is the one and I did not as our forehead scanner has a low battery and we have no AAAs hanging around because the baby keeps playing with it.

          https://www.withings.com/en-nz/collections/scanwatch-2

          It also does ECGs, which is unique.

          • 0
          • beatthatflight on 08/09/2026 - 23:10

            @[Deactivated]: Oh those are actually quite elegant! And given I get regular arrhythmia , the ECG could be handy too. Thanks, I'm going to look into these more.

            • 0
          • Jaxson on 09/09/2026 - 09:20

            @[Deactivated]: That’s a really nice style. Quite discrete.

            The higher end Apple Watches will do the ECG also but I don’t know many that do the temperature. Seems an easy with with all the sensors.

            Garmin does blood ox during the night which can be good for spotting sleep apnea issues.

            ECG is only in one place on the body but is better than nothing. Thanks for sharing.

            • 0
            • spam on 09/09/2026 - 09:27

              @Jaxson: Galaxy watch 9 also has ECG measurement and skin temperature, but not the body temp. It also allow you to do relative blood pressure with way to calibrate with blood pressure machine (Omron) every few weeks.

              • 0
      • deadfish on 08/09/2026 - 20:22

        Same here, I was miserable for about a month. I wish I’d gotten my vaccine earlier this year, my Southern Cross plan even covers it =/

        • 1
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