A Russian vaccine against meningococcal infection is undergoing state registration. As reported by Rafael Shavaliyev, Director of the Department of Medical Care for Children, Maternity Services and Public Health of the Russian Ministry of Health, the process is in its final stage. The Ministry of Health believes that amendments to include the vaccine in the national immunization schedule are possible only after the drug is registered and its price is set. However, the Ministry of Industry and Trade has proposed developing the regulatory framework in advance.
“We expect to obtain registration for the vaccine against meningococcal infection — that will be in the first half of 2027. We hope to meet that deadline,” Shavaliyev stated at a meeting of the State Duma Committee on Health Protection, adding that the minimum registration period for vaccines under current legislation ranges from six to nine months.
The vaccine was developed by the Federal Scientific Center — the St. Petersburg Institute of Vaccines and Sera — together with an enterprise producing bacteria and preparations of the Federal Medical Biological Agency (FMBA) of Russia. Shavaliyev added that legislative amendments to include the vaccine in the national calendar will only become possible after the drug is registered and its ex‑factory price is determined.
Deputy Director of the Department for the Development of Pharmaceutical and Medical Industry of the Ministry of Industry and Trade, Olga Kravtsova, in turn, proposed accelerating the inclusion of the drug into the national calendar by developing the regulatory framework right now.
“We have information from manufacturers and from the Ministry of Health that production sites have confirmed the ability to cover the estimated needs of the healthcare system. That information is available,” she said in an interview with RBC.
Making meningococcal vaccination mandatory was originally planned for 2026, but the timeline was pushed back at the end of 2025. The high relevance of this vaccine was previously mentioned by Alexander Rumyantsev, a member of the Duma Committee on Health Protection. According to him, deputies plan to draft amendments by the end of 2026 to include vaccination against meningococcal infection in the National Immunization Schedule. Rumyantsev added that the WHO recommends adding five new vaccines to the NIS, among which the meningococcal vaccine is a priority.