During pregnancy, the Ministry of Health recommends that pregnant people are vaccinated against Whooping Cough (dTap/ Boostrix Vaccine) and Flu.

Whooping cough vaccination is recommended in every pregnancy from 16 weeks so that mama can pass antibodies to pepi (antibodies made by the mama in response to being vaccinated, not vaccine material) and provides pepi with partial immunity until they are old enough to start their own vaccine schedule. It is a single dose vaccine but must be repeated in each pregnancy in order to boost antibodies. Whooping cough is very significant in children and can make babies very unwell, and often requiring hospitalisation.

The Flu vaccine is offered to pregnant people at any stage of their pregnancy, depending on the flu strains each year depends on the vaccine being offered. Flu vaccine season starts on April 1st. The flu is fully funded for pregnant people in New Zealand as it can make some people very unwell and can often lead to hospitalisation; being this sick can have a harmful affect the pregnancy.