Lloydspharmacy Wishes Customers A Flu-less Christmas
Lloydspharmacy starts price war as the cost of the winter flu vaccine is reduced


COVENTRY, ENGLAND, December 13, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Lloydspharmacy has announced that it has cut the price of its winter flu vaccinations by more than half price to encourage more people to protect themselves against the virus.

Recent research carried out by Lloydspharmacy found that take up for the vaccine has fallen this year*. This could be due to a misguided belief that the swine flu jab will protect against winter flu**. However, price may also be a factor as people cut back during the recession. At GBP5, the Lloydspharmacy winter flu vaccine is now the cheapest on the high street compared to Asda and Tesco which are both priced at GBP8.00.

Chris Frost, pharmacist and director at Lloydspharmacy, said: "Winter flu can be debilitating and in some cases lead to very serious health issues. By making the vaccines available in our pharmacies across the country we've already improved access. Now they're even more affordable we hope to have removed another barrier to people protecting themselves. The last thing anyone wants is to have flu over Christmas."

Seasonal flu is responsible for the deaths of about 8,000 people in the UK a year and tends to affect the more vulnerable or elderly people. The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control forecast that the swine flu and seasonal flu strains could each claim 40,000 lives across Europe this winter.

People over the age of 65 qualify for a free NHS seasonal flu vaccination as do people with conditions such as diabetes and heart disease. Others are able to get themselves protected on the high street. Lloydspharmacy offers a seasonal flu vaccination service in 260 of its pharmacies.

Editor's notes
* Opinium Research conducted for Lloydsphamacry among 2007 people in the UK between 4-6th November 2009 found 54% of people aged 65+ had received the winter flu vaccine. In 2008 uptake of the seasonal flu vaccine among over 65s was 73.5%
** ICM Omnibus 'Flu' Vaccinations Survey 25-27th September 2009 among 1003 people found almost two in five people wrongly believe that the swine flu vaccine will also protect them against winter flu.

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Press Release Contact Information:

Claire Connolly
Lloydspharmacy Limited
Press Officer
Sapphire Court, Walsgrave Triangle
Coventry, West Midlands
United Kingdom CV2 2TX
Voice: 024 7643 2192
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