The Department of Health and Aged Care has provided the following information regarding enhancements to the Australian Immunisation Register (AIR) for influenza vaccines, in preparation for the 2023 influenza season.
Addition of new influenza vaccines
To enable better monitoring and reporting of influenza vaccines funded under the National Immunisation Program (NIP), the following vaccine names will be added to the AIR.
| Addition of new influenza vaccines | |
|---|---|
| Vaccine Brand Name | Vaccine Code |
| Afluria Quad (NIP) | AFLQUA |
| Afluria Quad (Non-NIP) | QUADAF |
| Fluarix Tetra (NIP) | FLXTET |
| Fluarix Tetra (Non-NIP) | ARXFLU |
The change will enable vaccination providers to select whether an influenza vaccine is funded under the NIP or purchased on the private market.
When reporting to the AIR, vaccination providers should select the relevant vaccine name, ie (NIP) for NIP funded vaccines and (non-NIP) for privately purchased vaccines.
For individuals, only the vaccine brand name will display on their Immunisation History Statement.
For example, Afluria Quad (NIP) will display as “Afluria Quad”.
These new vaccine names will be available to report to the AIR using clinical software, however if these vaccines do not appear, the Department recommends vaccination providers contact their software provider in the first instance.
Alternatively, vaccination providers can report the vaccine to the AIR using the AIR site.
Updates to existing influenza vaccines
To improve the data quality and reporting of influenza vaccines, the AIR will be updated to prevent the reporting of historical vaccine brands which are no longer registered or available for use in Australia.
Please see below:
| Removal of below influenza vaccines | |
|---|---|
| Vaccine Brand Name | Vaccine Code |
| Afluria Quad | AFLR |
| Fluvax | FLUVAX |
| Vaxigrip | VAXGRP |
| Fluarix | FLRIX |
| Fluarix Tetra | FLUTET |
| FluQuadri Junior | FQDJN |
| Fluvirin | FLVRN |
| Panvax | PANVAX |
| Influvac | INFLUV |
| Agrippal | AGRPAL |
| Vaxigrip Junior | VGRJNR |
| Fluvax Junior | FVXJNR |
| Fluad | FLUAD |
| Fluzone High-Dose | FLUHID |
Please note:
- Vaccination providers will still be able to report these vaccines if they were administered prior to 11 February 2023
- Influenza vaccines reported to the AIR prior to 11 February 2023 will remain recorded on the AIR and display on individuals’ vaccination evidence.
In instances where an individual has been vaccinated (ie overseas) and the vaccine brand is not available to report to the AIR, vaccination providers can report it as a generic vaccine brand, for example ‘Generic Influenza’.
This ensures individuals have a complete AIR record and can provide evidence of vaccination for education, employment or travel purposes.
It is mandatory under the Australian Immunisation Register Act 2015, for vaccination providers to report all influenza vaccinations administered on, or after 1 March 2021.
Reporting timely, high quality and accurate vaccination information ensures the AIR contains a complete and reliable dataset to enable the monitoring of immunisation coverage and administration.