The recombinant herpes zoster vaccine, Shingrix, will soon replace the live-attenuated vaccine, Zostavax, on the National Immunisation Program following advice from the PBAC and ATAGI, the government has confirmed.

Patients aged 65 and over, immunocompromised adults at high risk of zoster infection and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander patients aged 50 and over will be eligible for free vaccination from 1 November.

The National Immunisation Program (NIP) listing is broader than the PBAC’s recommendation from April, which suggested an age threshold of 70 for non-Indigenous patients, and the current listing for Zostavax.

But those who had received NIP-funded Zostavax would need to wait at least five years before becoming eligible for a free two-dose course of Shingrix, the government said.