Swine flu vaccinations are set to be available by September 2009.

A swine flu vaccine is set to be available from September 2009, as the Department of Health announces that a vaccine will be fast-tracked for use in Britain within five days once it has been developed.

The news is in contradiction to that of a statement released on 12 June by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), which anticipated that the vaccine would be available in four to six months. 

The announcement comes after the death toll from the virus reached 16 in the UK, and follows news that the first person has died without any underlying health problems. So far, 14 people have died in England, and two in Scotland.

In its weekly update, the Department of Health said that 5 to 14-year olds remain the age group predominantly affected, and GP consultations on those presenting symptoms are now above the threshold level for normal seasonal flu activity.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), the global total of confirmed cases of swine flu has reached 94,512, with the worldwide death total standing at 429.

GSK has started the development of the swine flu A (H1N1) vaccine at its Canadian and German manufacturing sites following receipt of the seed strain from the WHO at the end of May. It is also still the primary supplier of the anti-viral drug, which is issued to patients upon confirmation of the virus. GSK also manufactures the seasonal flu vaccine and will continue production as usual for the winter 2009/10 season.